,^%ikk. 




m 



V '**"Be*:<p^am^0. 

CWCTrE5n?AiAD.— Cut up white celprv 
sma 1 With a knne. Thea chop the whu' 

r, ' i .7f'.^'''' ''"'' moisten we.l wita tUe foj'o v 
UK 6!iiad (iresam- which w equailv -ood ibr 

into tins, wluie warm, break iuur i-h.v eo^s on. 
at a time and stir to a smooth pasto"° Then 

cyii8tamlv,aud add ot each iugrfdieat till hi 

pare the dishes or salad for teaLlo ^l^ffj 
;>e!bre uecded. Hoviug mixed the ce^erl"^ 
S S ?ho i'f*«"?' b-^i'd in pyramld'form; 
frJli,. tue cage With quartered hard-boiled 
l^v Lver^* VJf '?|P''|-!. "^ »^"^'ht yellow ce)- 
!,/ A?^ ^ ^'^^^^ ^^^^ ol taste cau be shown 

Im.^ ° °5"!"/"^i"S of a dish of Palador auv 

el^LTeLiT' ' ''''' '•^'^^^^ "^"' ^ ^^«- - 
Cream MuFPiNS.-An excellent and well-tried 

^^^>2EMoyE mildew stains from linen take soap 

>^^Oiir,y^n th*??° ^"''''^■^ ^"'"e tine chalk aod 

\ ^ ^'h a ■*^^*' J^"^"' afterwards lav it on the 

\»? id as It dries wet it a little. The stains 

Vrl^fi!!!!"" *'^'^^ repeating the process 



COMJ^nTlT SENSE 



IN THE HOUSEHOLD 



A MANUAL OF 



PRACTICAL HOUSEWIFERY. 

So 



Br 
MARION HARLAND. 



"We go upon the practical mode of teaching, Nickleby. When a boy knowi 
this out of book, he goes and does it. This is our system. What do you think ai 
It I ^-—H^ickola* Aicklebv. 



OHAELES SOEIBNER & CO, 

1872. 



How to Make Poultices^ 



THE I 

SOS 



Bread and Milk Pouftice. — Put a tablespoon- 
ful of the crumbs of stale bread into a gill of 
water, and give the whole one boil up. Or, 
take stale bread-crumbs, pour over them boil- 
ing water and boil till soft, stirring well; take 
from the fire and gradually stir in a little gly- 
cerine or sweet oil, so as to render the poultice 
pliable when applied. 

Hop Poultice. — Boil one handful of dried 
hops in a half pint of water, until the half pint 
is reduced to a gill, then stir into it enough 
Indian meal to thicken it. 

Mustard Poultice. — Into one gill of boiling 
water stir one tablespoonful of Indian meal; 
spread the paste thus made upon a cloth, and 
spread over the paste one teaspoonful of mus- 
tard flour. If you wish a mild poultice, use a 
teaspoonful of mustard as it is prepared for the 
table, instead of mustard flour. 

Equal parts of ground mustard and flour 
made into a 'paste with warm water, and 
spread between two pieces of muslin form the 
indispensable mustard plaster. 

Ginger Poultice. — This is made like a mus- 
tard poultice, using ground ginger instead of 
mustard. A little vinegar is sometimes added 
to each of these poultices. 

Wormwood and Arnica are sometimes ap- 
plied in poultices. Steep the herbs in half a 
pint of cold water, and when all their virtue 
is extracted stir in a little bran or rye meal to 
thicken the liquid; the herbs must not be re- 
moved from the liquid. This is a useful appli- 
ance for sprains or bruises. 



/ 

'\\'^ 



.^ 



,^ 



r 



%-Z-3C^0O 



^Cis^ny 




) . 



TO MY 

FELLOW-nOUSEKEEPEES, 

IIORTH, EAST, BOUTH AND WEST, THIS VOLUMB, 

THE GLEANINGS OF MANY YEARS, 

IS CORDIALLY 

SUcbicatcb. 



msmM 




INDEX OF GENERAL SUBJECTS. 



r\ar. 

Blanc-mange 525 

Bread 209 

Brandied fruits 478 

Butter 263 

Cakes 310 

Candy 479 

I^anned fi-uits 473 

" vege1»ibles 476 

Catsups 193 

Clean, to, etc 528 

Company 154 

Com bread 294 

Creams 425 

Custards 425 

Drinks 491 

Eggs 252 

Familiar talk 13 

Fish 50 

Fritters 415 

Fruit, ripe, for dessert 453 

Game 160 

GLagcrbread 343 

Ices 443 

Ice-cream 443 

Icing 313 



Jellies 425 

Jellies, fruit 470 

Meats 98 

Milk 203 

Nursery, the 522 

Pancakes 415 

Pickles 480 

Pies 349 

Preserves 473 

Pork 128 

Poultry 82 

Puddings 383 

Salads 200 

Sauces for fish and meat. ... 183 

' ' for puddings 419 

Servants 370 

Sick-room, the 503 

Shell-fish 70 

Soap 539 

Soups 27 

Sundries 528 

Tarts 303 

Vegetables 210 

Vinegars, flavored 193 



(O/^/y-T-^J'^^^d ^ ^Vy^z>^^ _ 








9 



litmilm* WM tvUlt my Idloic-ftouisifljeqrev and 



A TALK as woman to woman, in wliich each sliall say, 
** I " and " yon," and " my dear," and " you know," as free- 
ly as she pleases. It would not be a womanly chat if we 
omitted these forms of expression. An informal preface to 
what I mean shall be an informal book — bristling with 
" I's " all the way through. If said bristles offend the 
critic's touch, let him remember that this work is not pre- 
pared for the library, but for readers who trouble themselves 
little about editorial " we's " and the cii-cumlocutions of 
literary modesty. 

I wish it were in my power to bring you, the prospec- 
tive* owner of this volume, in person, as I do in spirit, to 
my side on this winter evening, when the bairnies are 
" folded like the flocks ; " the orders for breakfast com- 
mitted to the keeping of Bridget, or Gretchen, or Chloe, or 
the plans for the morrow definitely laid in the brain of that 
ever-busy, but most independent of women, the housekeep- 
er wlio " does her own work," I should perhaps summon t(? 
our cozy conference a very weary companion — weary of 
foot, of hand — and I should not deserve to be yovu* confidant, 
did I not know how often heart-weary with discouragement ; 
with much producing of ways and means ; with a certain 
despondent looking forward to the monotonous giinding of 
vhe household machine ; to the certainty, proved by past ex 



14 COMMON SENSE. 

perience, tliat toilsome as has been tLis day, the morrow 
will prove yet more abundant in labors, in trials of strength, 
and nerves, and temper. You would tell me what a dreary 
problem this of " woman's work that is never done " is to 
your fainting soul ; how, try as you may and as you do to 
be systematic and diligent, something is always " turning 
up " iu the treadmill to keep you on the sti'ain ; how you 
often say to yourself, in bitterness of spirit, that it is a mis- 
take of Christian ci'vilization to ediicate girls into a love of 
science and literature, and then condemn them to the routine 
of a domestic drudge. You do not see, you say, that years 
of scholastic training ^vill make you a better cook, a better 
wife or mother. You have seen the time — nay, many times, 
since assuming your present position — when you would have 
exchanged yovxr knowledge of ancient and modern languages, 
belles-lettres, music, and natural science, for the skill of a 
competent kitchen-maid. The " learning how " is such hard 
work ! Labor, too, vmcheered by encouraging words from 
mature housewives, unsoftened by sympathy even from your 
husband, or your father or bi'other, or whoever may be the 
" one " to whom you " make home lovely." It may be that, 
in utter discouragement, you have made up your mind that 
you have " no talent for these things." 

I have before me now the picture of a wife, the mother 
of four children, who, many years ago, sickened me for all 
time with that phrase. In a slatternly morning-gown at 
four in the afternoon, leaning back in the laziest and most 
ragged of rocking-chairs, dust on the carpet, on the open 
piano, the mantel, the mirrors, even on her own hair, she 
rubbed the soft palm of one hand with the gi'imy fingers of 
the other, and with a sickly-sweet smile whined out — 

" Now, I am one of the kind who have no talent for 
such things ! The kitchen and housework and sewing are 
absolutely hateful to me — utterly uncongenial to my turn 



FAMILIAE TALK AA'ITH MY READER. l'^ 

of mind. The lieiglit of my earthly ambition is to hav« 
nothing to do but to paint on velvet all day ! " 

I felt then, in the height of my indignant disgust, that 
there was propriety as well as wit in the " Spectator's " sug- 
gestion that every young woman should, before fixing the 
wedding-day, be compelled by law to exhibit to inspectors a 
prescribed number of iTseful articles as her outfit — napery, 
bed-linen, clothing, etc., made by her own hands, and that 
it would be wise legislation which should add to these proofs 
of her fitness for her new sphere a practical knowledge of 
hoTisework and cookery. 

If you have not what our Yankee grandmothers termed 
a " faculty " for housewifery — yet are obliged, as is the 
case with an immense majority of American women, to 
conduct the affairs of a household, bills of fare included — 
there is the more reason for earnest application to your pro- 
fession. If the natural taste be dull, lay to it more strength 
of will — resolution born of a just sense of the importance 
of the knowledge and dexterity you would acquire. Do 
not scoff" at the word " profession." Call not that common 
and imclean which Providence has designated as your life- 
work. I speak not now of the labors of the culinaiy de- 
partment alone ; but, without naming the other duties which 
you and you only can perform, I do insist that upon method, 
skill, economy in the kitchen, depends so much of the well- 
being of the rest of the household, that it may safely be 
styled the root — the foundation of houseAvifery. I own it 
would be pleasanter in most cases, especially to those who 
have cultivated a taste for intellectual pursuits, to live 
above the heat and odor of this department. It must ba 
very fine to have an efficient aide-de-camp in the person of 
a French cook, or a competent sub-manager, or an accom- 
plished head-waiter who receives your orders for the day in 
your boudoir or library, and executes the same with zeal 



16 COMMON SENSE. 

and discretion tliat leave you no room for anxiety or regret; 
Such misti'esses do not need cookery-books. The few — and 
it must be borne in mind that in this country tliese are very 
few — born in an estate like this Avould not comprehend 
^Yhat I am now writing ; would not enter into the deptha 
of that compassionate yearning which moves me as I think 
of what I have known for myself in the earlier years of my 
wedded life, what I have heard and seen in ether house- 
holds of honest intentions brought to contempt ; of ill-di- 
rected toil ; of mortification, and the heavy, wearing sense 
of inferiority that puts the novice at such a woful disadvan- 
tage in a community of notable managers. 

There is no use in enlarging upon this point. You and 
I might compare experiences by the hour Avithout exhaust- 
ing our store. 

" And then " — you sigh, with a sense of resentment 
upon you, however amiable your disposition, for the pi'ovo- 
cation is du-e — " cookery-books and yoiing housekeepers' 
assistants, and all that sort of thing, are such humbugs ! — ■ 
dark lanterns at best — too often Will-o'-the-wis]is." 

My dear, Avould you mind handing me the book which 
lies nearest you on the table there ? " Dickens ? " Of 
course. You will usually find something of his in every 
room in this house — almost as surely as you will a Bible. 
It rests and refreshes one to pick him up at odd times, and 
dip in anywhere. Hear the bride, ]\Irs. John Kokesmith, 
upon our common grievance. 

" She was under the constant necessity of referring for 
advice and support to a sage volume, entitled ' The Com- 
plete British Family Housewife,' which she would sit con- 
sulting, with her elbows upon the table, and her temples in 
her hands, like some perplexed enchantress poring over the 
Black Art. This, principally becaiise the Complete British 
Housewife, however sound a Briton at heart, was by nc 



FAMILIAK TALK WITH MY KEADER. 1? 

means an expert Briton at expressing lierself with clearness 
in the British tongue, and sometimes might have issued her 
directions to equal purpose in the Ivamtchatkan language/' 

Don't interrupt me, my long-suflering sister ! There is 
more of the same sort to come. 

" There was likewise a coolness on the part of ' The 
Complete British Housewife ' which Mrs. John Rokesmith 
found highly exasperating. She woiild say, ' Take a sala- 
mander,' as if a general should command a private to catch 
a Tartar. Or, she would casually issue the order, ' Throw 
in a handful ' of something entirely unattainable. In 
these, the housewife's most glai-ing moments of unreason, 
Bella would sliut her up and knock her on the table, apos- 
trophizing her with the compliment — ' O you ARE a stupid 
old donkey ! AVliere am I to get it, do you think ? ' " 

"When 1 took possession of my first real home, the pret- 
tily furnished cottage to which I came as a bride, more full 
of hojie and courage than if I liad been wiser, five good 
friends presented me with as many cookery-books, each com- 
jjlete, and all by dilierent compilers. One day's investiga- 
tion of my mencKje convinced me that my lately-hired 
servants knew no more about cookery than I did, or afiected 
stupidity to develop my capabilities or ignorance. Too 
proud to let them suspect the truth, or to have it bruited 
abroad as a tojiic for pitying or contemptuous gossip, I 
shut myself up with my " Complete Housewives," and in- 
clined seriously to the study of the same, comparing one 
with the other, and seeking to shape a theory which should 
gi'ow into pi'actice in accordance with the best authority. 
I don't like to remember that time ! The question of dis- 
agreeing doctors, and the predicament of falling between 
two stools, are trivial perplexities when compared with my 
strife and failure. 

Said the would-be studious countryman to whom a mis- 



18 COMMON SENSE. 

chievo\is acquaintance lent " "Webster's Unabridged Dio 
tionary " as an entertaining volume, " I wrastled, and 1 
wrastled, and I wrastled with it, but I couldn't get up much 
of an interest." 

My wrestling begat naught save pitiable confusion, hope- 
less distress, and a three-days' sick headache, during which 
season I am not sure that I did not darkly contemplate sui- 
cide as the only sure escape from the meshes that girt me. 
At the height- -or depth — of my despondency a friend, one 
with a great heart and steady brain, came to my rescue. 
Her cheerful laugh over my dilemma rings down to me 
now, through all these years, refreshingly as it then saluted 
my ears. 

" Bless your innocent little heart ! " she cried, in her 
fresh, gay voice, " Ninety-nine out of a hundred cook-books 
are written by people who never kept house, and the hun- 
dredth by a good cook who yet doesn't knoAv how to exjiress 
herself to the enlightenment of others. Compile a receipt- 
book for yourself. Make haste slowly. Learn one thing at 
a time, and when you have mastei'ed it, ' make a note on 
it,' as Captain Cuttle says — never losing sight of the princi- 
ple that you must do it in order to learn liowy 

Then she opened to me her own neatly-written " Man- 
ual " — the work of years, recommending, as I seized it, 
that I should commence my novitiate with simjile dishes. 

This was the beginning of the hoard of practical receipts 
I now offer for your inspection. For fifteen years, I have 
steadily pursued this work, gleaning here and sifting there, 
and levying such remorseless contributions upon my friends, 
that I fear the sight of my paper and pencil has long since 
become a bugbear. For the kindness and covirtesy which 
have been my invariable portion in this quest, I hereby re 
turn hearty thanks. For the encouraging words and good 
wishes that have ever answered the hint of my intention tc 



FAMILIAR TALK WITH MY EEADEK. 10 

collect what had proved so vakiable to me into a piinteii 
volume, I declare myself to be yet more a debtor. I da 
not claim for my compend the proud pre-eminence of the 
*' Complete American Housewife." It is no boastful system 
of " Cookery Taught in Twelve Lessons." And I should 
write myself down a knave or a fool, were I to assert that 
a raw cook or ignorant mistress can, by half-a-day's study 
of my collection, equal Soyer or Blot, or even approximate 
the art of a half-taught scullion. 

We may as well start from the right point, if we hope 
to continue friends. You must learn the x'udiments of the 
aii; for yourself. Practice, and practice alone, will teach 
you cci'tain essentials. The management of the ovens, the 
requisite thickness of boiling custards, -the right shade of 
brown upon bread and roasted meats — these and dozens of 
other details are hints which cannot be imparted by wiitten 
or oral instructions. But, once learned, they are never foi-- 
gotten, and henceforward your fate is in your own hands. 
You are mistress of yourself, though servants leave. Have 
faith in your own abilities. You will be a better cook for 
the mental training you have received at school and from 
books. Brains tell everywhere, to say nothing of intel- 
ligent observation, just judgment, a faithful memory, and 
orderly habits. Consider that you have a profession, as I 
said just now, and resolve to understand it in all its branches. 
My book is designed to help you. I believe it will, if for 
no other reason, because it has been a faithful guide to my- 
self — a reference beyond value in seasons of doubt and need. 
I have brought every receipt to the test of common sense 
and experience. Those which I have not tried myself were 
obtained from reliable housewives — the best I know. I 
have enjoyed the task heartily, and from first to last the 
persuasion has never left me that I was engaged in a good 
cause. Thi'oughout I have had you, my dear sister, present 



^ 



20 COMMON SENSE. 

before me, with the little plait between, your brows, th« 
wistful look about eye and moiith that reveal to me, aa 
words could not, your desire to " do your best." 

" In a humble home, and in a humble way," I hear you 
add, perhaps : you " are not ambitious ; " you " only want 
to help John, aud to make him and the children comfortable 
and happy." 

Heaven reward your honest, loyal endeavors ! Would 
you mind if I were to whisper a word in your ear I don't 
care to have progressive people hear ? — although progress 
is a gi'and thing when it takes the right direction. My 
deal*, John and the children, and the humble home, make 
your sphere for the pi-eseut, you say. Be sure you fill it — 
full ! before you seek one wider and higher. There is no 
better receipt between these covers than that. Leave the 
rest to God. Everybody knows those four lines of George 
Herbert's, which ought to be framed and hung up in the 
work-room of every house : — 

" A servant, with this clause, 
Makes drudgery diviue ; 
Who sweeps a room as for Thy laws 
Makes that and th' action fine." 

I wonder if the sainted poet knows — in that land where 
drudgery is one of the rough places forever overpast, and 
work is unmiiigled blessing— to how many sad and striving 
hearts those words have brought peace '? 

And by way of helping John, not only by saving money 
and preparing palatable aud wholesome dishes for his table, 
but by sjiaring the wife he loves many needless steps and 
much hurtful care, will you heed a homely hint or two re- 
lative to the practice of your art? Study method, and 
economy of time and strength, no less than of materials. 
I take it for granted that you are too intelligent to shave in 
the vulgar prejudice against labor-saving machines. ^ 



FA^VIILIAK TALK TVITH MY EEADEE. 21 

raisin-seeder costs a trifle in comparison with the time anj 
patience required to stone the fruit in the okl way. A good 
egg-beater is a treasure. So with farina-kettles, syllabub- 
churns, apple-coreis, potato-peelers and slicers, clothes- 
wringers and sprinklers, and the like. Most of these are 
made of tin — are therefore cheap and easily kept clean. 
Let each article have its own place in the closet and kit- 
chen, to which restore it so soon as you have done using it. 
Before undertaking the preparation of any dish, read over 
the receipt carefully, unless you are thoroughly familiar 
with the manufacture of it. Many excellent housewives 
have a fashion of saying loftily, when asked how siich things 
are made — " I carry all my receipts in my head. I never 
wrote out one in my life. " 

And you, if timid and self-distrustful, are smitten with 
shame, keep your receipt-book out of sight, and cram your 
memory with ingredients and measures, times and weights, 
for fear Mrs. Notable should suspect you of rawness and 
inefficiency. Whereas the truth is, that if you have a mind 
worthy of the name, its powers are too valuable to be laden 
■with such details. Master the general principles, as I said 
just now, and for particulars look to your marching-orders. 
Having refi'eshed your memory by this reference, pick out 
from your household stores, and set in convenient order, 
within reach of your hand, everything you will need in 
making ready the particular compound under consideration. 
Then take your stand in the midst — or sit, if you can. It 
is common sense — oftentimes a pious duty, to take judicioiis 
care of your physical health. I lay it down as a safe and im- 
perative rule for kitchen use — Kever stand tvhen you can 
do your loork as well while sitting. If I could have John's 
ear for a minute, I would tell him that Avhich woiild lead 
him to watch j'ou and exercise wholesome authority in thia 
recrard. 



22 COHESION SENSE. 

. Next, pref/are eacli ingredient for mixing, that the bread, 
cake, pudding, soup, or ragout may not be delayed when 
half finished because the Hour is not sifted, or the " shorten- 
ing " warmed, the sugar and butter are not creamed, the 
meat not cut up, or the herbs not minced. Don't begin 
until you are ready ; then go steadily forward, " without 
haste, without rest," and think of what you are doing, 

" Dickens again ? " 

Why not, since there is no more genial and pertinent 
philosopher of common life and every-day subjects? To 
quote, then : — 

" It was a maxim of Captain Swosser's," said Mrs. 
Badger, " speaking in his figurative, naval manner, that 
when you make pitch hot, you cannot make it too hot, and 
that if you have only to swab a plank, you shoidd swab it 
as if Davy Jones were after you. It appears to me that this 
maxim is applicable to tlie medical as well as the nautical 
profession." 

" To all professions ! " observed Mr. Badger. " It was 
admirably said by Captain Swosser ; beautifully said ! " 

But it will sometimes happen that when you have heated 
your pitch, or swabbed your deck, or made your pudding 
according to the lights set before you, the result is a failure. 
This is especially apt to occur in a maiden eflfort. You 
have wasted materials and time, and suffered, moreover, 
acute demoralization — are enwrajiped in a wet blanket of 
discouragement, instead of the seemly robe of complacency. 
Yet no part of the culinary education is more useful, if 
turned to proper account, than this very discipline of failure. 
It is a stepping-stone to excellence — sharp, it is true, but 
often sure. You have leai-ned how not to do it I'ight, which 
is the next thing to success. It is pretty certain that you 
will avoid, in your second essay, the rock ■•ipon which you 
have split this time. And, after all, there are few failurea 



FAMTLIAK TALK WITH MY KEADER. i'o 

which are utter and irremediable. Scorched soups and 
custards, sour bread, biscuit yellow with soda, and cakt 
heavy as lead, come under the head of " hopeless." They 
are absolutely unfit to be set before civilized beings and 
educated stomachs. Should svich mishaps occur, lock the 
memoiy of the attempt in your own bosom, and do not vex 
or amuse John and your guests with the narration, still less 
with visible proof of the calamity. Many a partial failure 
would pass unobserved but for the clouded brow and earnest 
apologies of the hostess. Do not apologize except at the 
last gasp ! If there is but one chance in ten that a single 
person present may not discover the deficiency which has 
changed all food on the table to dust and gravel-stones to 
you, trust to the one chance, and carry off the matter 
bravely. You will be astonished to find, if you keep your 
wits about you how often even your husband vali remain 
in blissful ignorance that aught has gone wrong, if yovi do 
not tell him. You know so v/ell what should have been the 
product of your labor that you exaggerate the justice of 
others' perceptions. Console yourself, furthermore, with 
the reflection that yours is not the first failure upon record, 
nor the million-and-first, and that there will be as many to- 
morrows as there have been yesterdays. 

Don't add to a trifling contretemps the real discomfort 
of a discontented or fretful wife. Say blithely, if John 
note your misfortune — " I hope to do better another time," 
and do not be satisfied until you have redeemed your 
pledge. Experience and your quick wit will soon teach von 
how to avert impending evils of this nature, how to snatch 
your preparations from imminent destruction, and, by in- 
genious correctives or concealments, to make them present- 
able. These yoxi will soon learn for yourself if you keep 
before you the truism I have already written, to wit, that 
few failures are beyond repair. 



24 COaiMON SENSE. 

ITever try experiments for the benefit of invited guests 
nor, when John is at home, risk the success of your meal 
upon a new dish. Have something which you know ha 
can eat, and introduce experiments as by-play. But do not 
be too shy of innovations in the shape of untried dishes. 
Variety is not only pleasant, but healthful. The least 
pampered palate will weary of stereotyped bills of fare. It 
i,s an idea which should have been exploded long ago, that 
pidin roast, boiled, and fried, on Monday, Tuesday, Wednes- 
day, and Thursday, cod-fish on Friday, with pork-and-beans 
every Saturday, are means of grace, because economical. 
And with this should have vanished the prejudice against 
wai-med-over meals — or rechauffes, as our French friends 
terin them. I have ti-ied, in the following pages, to set 
forth tlie attractions of these, their claims to your attention 
as being savory, economical, nourishing, aiid often elegant. 
In preparing these acceptably, everything de})ends upon 
your own taste and skill. Season with judgment, cook 
just enough and not a minute too long, and dish nicely. 
The recommendation of the eye to tbe palate is a point no 
cook can afford to disregard. If you can offer an unex- 
pected visitor nothing better than bread-and-butter and cold 
ham, he will enjoy the luncheon twice as much if the bread 
be sliced thinly and evenly, spread smoothly, each slice 
folded in the middle upon the buttered surface, and ]iiled 
symmetrically ; if the ham be also cut tliin, scarcely thicker 
than a wafer, and garnished with parsley, cresses, or curled 
lettuce. Set on mustard and i)icklcs ; let the table-cloth 
and napkin be white and glossy ; the glass clear, and plate 
shining clean ; and add to these accessories to comfort a 
bright welcome, and, my word for it, you need fear no dis- 
satisfaction on his part, however epicurean may be hia 
tastes. Should your cupboard be bare of aught more sub- 
stantial than crackers and cheese, do not yield to dismay 



FAMILIAK TALK WITH MY EEADER. 2o 

Split tlie crackers (if splittable), toast the inside lightly, 
and butter while hot. Grate your cheese into a powdery 
mound, garnishing the edges of the plate. If you have no 
beverage except water to set before him, let this be cool, 
and pour it out for him youi'self, into an irreproachable 
glass. A dirty table-cloth, a smeared goblet, or a sticky 
plate, will spoil the most luxurious feast. A table well set 
is half-spread. 

I have not said one-tenth of that which is pressing upon 
my heart and mind, yet I fear you may think me trite and 
tediovis. One suggestion more, and we will proceed to the 
details of business. 

I believe that, so far as care can avail in securing such 
a result, my receipts are accurate. But in the matter of 
seasoning and other minor details, consult your judgment 
and John's taste. Take this liberty with whatever receipt 
you think you can impi'ove. If I chance to find in your 
work-basket, or upon the kitchen dresser, a well-thumbed 
copy of my beloved " Common Sense," Avith copious anno- 
tations in the margin, I shall, so far from feeling wounded, 
be flattered in having so diligent a student, and, with your 
permission, shall engraft the most happy suggestions upon 
the second edition. 

For the speedy issue of which, the petitioner doth hum- 
bly pray. 

Marion Harland. 
2 



NOTE. 

Ik looking over this book the reader will notice certain receipts 
marked thus — ►J«. I do not claim for these greater merit than should 
of right be accorded to manj others. I merely wish to call the at- 
tention of the norice to them as certainly safe, and for the most 
part simple. Every one thus marked has been tried by myself; 
most of them are in frequent, some in daily use, in my ovm family. 

My reason for thus singling out comparatively a small number of 
receipts from the rest, is the recollection of my own perplexities — 
the loss of time and patience to which I have been subjected in the 
examination of a new cookery-book, with an eye to immediate use 
of the directions laid down for various dishes. I have often and 
vainly wished for a finger-board to guide me ia vaj search for those 
which were easy and sure, and which would result satisfactorily. 
This sort of directory I have endeavored to supply, taking care, 
however, to inform the reader in advance that, so far as I know, 
there is not an unsafe receipt in the whole work. 

Of course it was not necessary or expedient to append the above 
sign to plain " roast and boiled," which are in common use every- 
where. 



SOUPS. 

The base of jowr soiip sliould always be uncooked meat. 
To this may be added, if you like, cracked bones of cooked 
game, or of undei'done beef or m^itton ; but for flavor and 
nourishment, depend upon the jnices of the meat which 
was put in raw. Cut this into small jiieces, and beat the 
bone until it is fractured at every inch of its length. Put 
them on in cold water, without salt, and heat very slowly. 
Do not boil fast at any stage of the operation. Keep the 
pot covered, and do not add the salt until the meat is thor- 
oughly done, as it has a tendency to harden the fibres, and 
restrain the flow of the j uices. Strain — always through a 
cullender, after which clear soups should be filtered thi'ough 
a haii'-sieve or coarse bobbinet lace. The bag should not 
be squeezed. 

It is slovenly to leave rags of meat, husks of vegetables 
and bits of bone in the tureen. Do not uncover until you 
are ready to ladle o\it the soup. Do this neatly and quickly, 
having your soup-plates heated beforehand. 

Most soups are better the second day than the first, tin- 
less they are warmed over too quickly or left too long upon 
the fire after they are hot. In the one case they are apt 
to scorch J in the other they become insipid. 



28 COaiMON SENSE. 

VEGETABLE SOUPS. 

Green Pea. (No. 1.) «^ 

4 lbs. beef — cut into small pieces. 
■^ peck of green peas. 

1 gallon water. 

Boil the empty pods of the peas in the water one hoxii 
before putting in the beef. Strain them out, add the beef, 
and boil slowly for an hour and a half longer. Half an hour 
befoi'e serving, add the shelled peas ; and twenty minutes 
later, half a cup of rice-flour, with salt and j^eppa*. A 
little chopped parsley is an improvement. After adding 
the rice-flour, stir frequently, to jirevent scorching. Strain 
into a hot tureen. 

Gbeen Pea. (No. 2.) 

2 qts. of veal or beef broth. 
■| teaspoonful sugar. 

1 tablespoonful butter. 
1 qt. shelled peas. 

Bring the broth to a boil ; piit in the peas, and boU for 
twenty minutes. Add the sugar, and a bunch of green 
mint. Boil a quarter of an hour more, and stir in the 
butter, with pepper and salt, if the broth be not sufliciently 
Baited already. Strain before serving, and send to table with 
small squares of toasted bread floating upon the top. 

Split Pea {dried). »J« 
1 gallon water. 

1 qt. split peas, which have been soaked over night. 
1 lb, salt pork, cut into bits an inch square. 
i lb, beef, « " « 



TEGETABLE SOUPS. 29 

Put over the fire, and boil slowly for two hoiti's, or until 
the quantity of liquor does not exceed two quarts. Pour 
into a cullender, and press the peas through it with a wooden 
or silver spoon. Return the soup to the pot, adding a small 
head of celery, chopped up, a little parsley, or, if preferred, 
summer savory or sweet marjoram. Have ready three or 
four slices of bread (stale) which have been fried in butter 
until they are brown ; cut into slices and scatter them upon 
the surface of the soup after it is poured into the tureen. 

Pea and Tomato. *|« 

Tliis is made according to either of the foregoing receipts, 
ill summer with green — in winter with dried and split 
peas. Just before straining the soup, add a quart of toma- 
toes, which have already been stewed soft ; let the whole 
come to a good boil, and strain as above directed. If the 
stewed tomato be watery, strain off the superfluous liquid 
before pouring into the pea soup, or it will be too thin. 

Bean (dried), oj* 

The beans used for this purpose may be the ordinary 
kidney, the rice or field bean, or, best of all, the French 
mock-turtle soup bean. Soak a quart of these over night 
in soft lukewarm water ; put them over the fire next morn- 
ing, with one gallon of cold water and about two pounds of 
salt pork. Boil slowly for three houi'S, keeping the pot 
well covered ; shred into it a head of celery, add pepper — 
cayenne, if preferred — simmer half an hour longer, strain 
through a cullender, and serve, with slices of lemon passed 
to each guest. 

INIock-turtle beans, treated in tliis way, yield a very fair 
substitute for the fine calf 's-head soup known by the same 
name. 



30 common sense. 

Bean and Corn. »J« 

This is a winter soup, and is made of wliite beans pre- 
pared according to the foregoing receipt, but with the addi- 
tion of a quart of dried or canned corn. If the former is 
used — and the Shaker sweet corn is nearly as good for the 
purpose as the more expensive canned green corn — soak it 
overnight in warm water — changing this early in the morn- 
ing, and pouring on more warm water, barely enough to 
cover the corn, and keeping it in a close vessel until ready 
to put on the beans. Let all boil together, with pork as in 
the bean soup proper. Strain out as usual. Some persons 
have a habit of neglecting the use of the cullender in mak- 
ing bean soup, and serving it like stewed beans which have 
been impei^fectly drained. The practice is both slovenly 
and unwholesome, since the husks of the cereal are thus im- 
posed upon the digestive oi-gans of the eater, with no addi- 
tional nutriment. To the beans and corn may be added a 
pint of stewed tomato, if desired. 

Asparagus ( White soup). 

3 lbs. veal. The knuckle is best. 

3 bunches asj^aragus, as well bleached as yon can 

procure. 
1 gallon water. 

Cut off the hard green stem, and put half of the tender 
heads of the asparagus into the water with the meat. Boil 
in a closely covered pot for three hours, until the meat is 
in rags and the asparagus dissolved. Strain the liquor and 
return to the pot, with the remaining half of the asparagus 
heads. Let this boil for twenty minutes more, and add, be- 
fore taking up, a cup of sweet milk (cream is better) in 
which has been stirred a tablespoonful of rice-flour, arrow- 
root, or corn-starch. When it has fairly boiled up, serve 



VEGETABLE SOUPS. 31 

without further straining, with small squares of toast in tha 
tureen. Season with salt and pepper. 

Asparagus ( Green soup). 

3 lbs. veal — cut into small pieces. 

\ lb. salt pork. 

3 bunches asparagus. 

] gallon water. 

Cut the entii-e stalk of the asparagus into pieces an inch 
long, and when the meat has boiled one hoiu-, add half of the 
vegetable to the Kquor in the 2Jot. Boil two hours longer 
and strain, pressing the asparagus pulp very hard to extract 
all the gi-een coloring. Add the other half of the aspara- 
gus — (the heads only, which should be kept in cold water 
until you are ready for them), and boil twenty minutes more. 
Then proceed as with the asparagus white soup, omitting 
the milk, thickening, and salt. The pork will supply tha 
latter seasoning. 

Tomato ( Winter soup), »J« 

3 lbs. beef. 

1 qt. canned tomatoes. 

1 gallon water. 

Let the meat and water boil for two hours, until tha 
liquid is reduced to little more than two quarts. Then 
stir in the tomatoes, and stew all slowly for three-quartera 
of an hour longer. Season to taste, strain, and serve. 

Tomato {^Summer soup), i^ 

2\ lbs. veal, or lamb. 

1 gallon water. 

2 qts. fresh tomatoes, peeled and cut up fine. 



32 COMMON SENSE. 

Boil the meat to slu-eds auci the water down to two 
quarts. Strain the liquor, put in the tomatoes, stirring 
them very hard that they may dissolve thoroughly ; boil 
half an hour. Season with parsley or any other green herb 
you niE^y jirefer, peppei-, and salt. Strain again, and stir in 
a tablespoonful of buttei', with a teaspoonful of white sugar, 
before pouring into the tureen. 

This soup is more palatable still if made with the broth 
in which chickens were boiled for yesterday's dinner. 

Turnip. 

Knuckle of veal, well cracked. 
5 qts. water. 

Cover closely and stew gently for four hours, the day 
before the soup is wanted. On the morrow, skim off the 
fat and warm the stock gradually to a boil. Have ready 
an onion and six large winter or a dozen small summer 
turnips, sweet marjoram or thyme minced very finely. Put 
these into the soup and let them simmer together for an 
hour. Strain ; return to the fire and add a cup of milk — • 
in which has been stirred a tablespoonful of rice-flour or 
other thickening — and a tablespoonful of butter. Season 
with salt and pepper, let it boil ujd once, stirring all the 
time, as is necessary in all soups where milk is added at 
the last, and remove instantly, or it will scorch. 

Potato. 
A dozen large mealy potatoes. 
• 2 onions. 

1 lb. salt pork. 
3 qts. water. 

Boil the pork in the clear water for an liour and a half, 
then take it out. Have ready the potatoes, which, aftei 



VEGETABLE SOUPS. 33 

being peeled and sliced, should lie in cold water for lialf an 
hour. Throw them into the pot, with the chopped onion. 
Cover and boil three-quarters of an hour, stirring often. 
Beat in a large tablespoonful of butter, and a cup of cream 
or milk in which has been mixed a well-beaten egg. Add 
the latter ingredients carefully, a little at a time ; stir while 
it heats to a final boil, and then serve. 

This is a cheap and wholesome dish, and more palatablo 
than one would suppose from reading tlie receipt. 

Graham Soup. sJ< 
3 onions. 

3 carrots. 

4 turnips. 

1 small cabbage. 

1 bunch celery. 

1 pt. stewed tomatoes. 

Chop all the vegetables, except the tomatoes and cabbage, 
very finely, and set them over the fire with rather over 
three quarts of water. They should simmer gently for half 
an hour, at the end of which time the cabbage must be added, 
having pi'eviously been parboiled and chopped up. » In fif- 
teen minutes more put in the tomatoes and a bunch of sweet 
herbs, and give all a lively boil of twenty minutes. Rub 
through a cullender, return the soup to the fire, stir in a 
good tablespoonful of butter, pepper, and salt, half a cup of 
cream if you have it, thickened with corn-starch j let it boil 
up, and it is ready for the table. 

OcHRA, OR Gumbo. 
Ochra, or oTcra, is a vegetable little known except in the 
far South, where it is cultivated in large quantities and is 
very popular, A favorite soup is prepared from it in the 
following manner : — 
2* 



34 COMilON SEl^SE. 

2 qts. of ocliras, sliced thin. 

1 qt. of tomatoes, also sliced. 
4 tablespoonfuls of butter. 

2 lbs. of beef, cut into small pieces. 

|- lb. ham or pickled pork, also cut up. 

Put the meat and ochras together in a pot with a quai-t 
of cold water — just enough to cover them — and let them 
stew for an hour. Then add the tomatoes and two quarts 
of boiling water — more if the liquid in the pot has boiled 
away so as to expose the meat and vegetables. Boil three- 
quarters of an hour longer, skimming often with a silver 
spoon. When the contents of the vessel are boiled to pieces, 
put in the butter, with cayenne pepper and salt, if the ham 
has not seasoned it sufficiently. Strain and send up with 
squares of light, crisp toast floating upon it. 

Corn. »^ 

1 lai'ge fowl, cut into eight pieces. 
1 dozen ears green corn. 

Boil the chicken in a gallon of water until tender — if 
tough, the boiling must be slow and long. Then cut the 
corn from the cob aiid pvit into the pot, and stew an hoiir 
longer — still gently. Remove the chicken with a cupful 
of the liquid, if you wish to make other use of the meat. 
Set this aside, season the corn-soup with pepper, salt, and 
parsley ; thicken with rice or wheat flour, boil up once, 
and serve without straining, if the corn be young and tender. 

A tolerable fricassee may be made of the chicken, unless 
it has boiled to rags, by beating up an egg and a tablespoon- 
ful of butter, adding this to the cupful of reserved liquor, 
from which the corn must be strained. Boil this for a 
moment, thicken with flour, throw in a little chopped pars- 
ley, pepper, and salt, pour, while scalding, over the chicken, 



MEAT SOUPS. 



which you have arranged in a dish ; garnish with circular 
slices of hard-boiled eggs and curled parsley. 



MEAT SOUPS. 
Beep Soup (« la Jtdienne). *J« 
6 lbs. of lean beef. The shin is a good piece for this pur- 
pose. Have the bones well cracked, carefully extracting 
the marrow, every bit of wliich should be put into the 
soup. 
6 qts. of water. 

The stock must be prepared the day before the soup is 
needed. Put the beef, bones and all, with the water in a 
close vessel, and set it where it will heat gradually. Let it 
boil very slowly for six hours at least, only uncovering the 
pot once in a great while to see if there is danger of the 
water sinking too rapidly. Should this be the case, replen- 
ish with boiling water, taking care not to put in too much. 
During the seventh hoi;r, take off the soup and set it away, 
still closely covered, until next morning. About an hour 
before dinner, take out the meat, which you can use for 
mince-meat, if you wish ; remove the cake of fat from the 
surface of the stock, set the soup over the fire, and throw in 
a little salt to bring up the scum. When this has been 
skimmed carefully off, jiut in your vegetables. These should 
be:— 

2 carrots. 

3 turnips. 

Half a head of white cabbage. 

1 pt. green corn — or dried Shaker coi^n, soaked 

over night. 
1 head celery. 
1 qt. tomatoes. 



36 COMMON SENSE. 

These .should be pi-eparcd for the soup by slicing them 
very small, and stewing tliem in barely enough water tc 
cover them, until they break to pieces. Cook the cabbage 
by itself in two waters — throwing the first away. The only 
exception to the general dissolution, is in the case of a single 
carrot, which should likewise be cooked alone and whole, 
until thoroughly done, and set aside to cool, when the rest 
of the vegetables, with the water in which they were boiled, 
are added to the sou]). Return the pot to the fire with tlie 
vegetables and stock, and boil slowly for half an hour from 
the time ebullition actually begins. Strain without pressing, 
only shaking and lightly stirring the contents of the cvil- 
lender. The vegetables having been added with all their 
juices already cooked, much boiling and squeezing are not 
needed, and only make the soup cloudy. Cut the reserved 
carrot into dice and drop into the clear liqiior after it is in 
the tureen, — also, if yovi like, a handful of vermicelli, or 
macaroni which has been boiled tender in clear water. 

The seasoning of this excellent soup is a matter of taste. 
Some use only salt and white pepper. Others like with 
this a few blades of mace, and boil in the stock a handful 
of sweet herbs. And others fancy that, in addition to 
these, a glass of brawn sherry imparts a flavor that renders 
it peculiarly acceptable to most palates. Send to table very 
liot, and have the soii2:>-plates likewise heated. 

Yeal Soup with Macaroni. kJ* 

3 lbs. of veal knuckle or scrag, with the bones 

broken and meat cut up. 
3 qts. water. 
^ lb. Italian macaroni. 

Boil the meat alone in the water for nearly three hours, 
until it is reduced to shreds : and the macaroni until ten- 



MEAT SOUPS. 'd1 

der, in enougli water to cover it, in a vessel by itself. Tlia 
pieces should not be more than an inch in length. Add a 
little butter to the macaroni when nearly done. Strain tlie 
meat out of the soup, season to your taste, put in the ma- 
caroni, and the water in which it was boiled; let it boil up, 
and serve. 

You can make macaroni soup of this by boiling a pound, 
instead of a quarter of a pound, in the second vessel, and 
adding the above quantity of veal broth. In this case, send 
on with it a j)late of gi'ated cheese, that those who cannot 
lelish macaroni without this accompaniment may put it 
into their soup. Take care that the macaroni is of uniform 
length, not too long, and that it does not break while stew- 
ing. Add butter in proportion to the inci-eased quantity of 
macaroni. 

Beef Soup [brown). 

3 lbs. beef cut into strips. 
3 onions. 
3 qts. water. 

Put beef and water into the saucepan and boil for one 
hour. Meanwhile, slice the onions and fry them in butter 
to a light brown. Drop into the pot with a teaspoonful of 
cloves, half as much pepper, same quantity of mace as pep- 
per, a pinch of allspice, and a teaspoonful of essence of celery, 
if yoii cannot get a head of fresh celery ; also half a tea- 
spoonful of powdered savory or sweet marjoram, and a tea- 
spoonful of Worcestershire sauce. Stew all for two hours 
more, or until the beef has boiled to pieces. Strain the 
soup and return to the fire. Salt to taste, and ji'ist before 
taking it off, pou»' in a glass of brown sherry or Madeir^i 
wine. 



38 COMMON SENSE. 

Mutton or La.mb Broth, p^ 

4 lbs. mutton or lamb — lean — cut into small pieces. 
1 gallon water. 
^ teacupful rice. 

Boil the unsalted meat for two liours, slowly, in a covered 
vessel. Soak the rice in enough warm water to cover it, 
and at the end of this time add it, water and all, to the boil- 
ing soup. Cook an hour longer, stii-ring watchfully from 
time to time, lest the rice should settle and adhere to the 
bottom of the pot. Beat an egg to a froth and stir into a 
cup of cold milk, into which has been rubbed smoothly a 
tablespoonful rice or wheat flovir. Mix with this, a little at 
at a time, some of the scalding liquor, until the egg is so far 
cooked that there is no danger of curdling in the soup. 
Pour into the pot, when you have taken out the meat, 
season with parsley, thyme, pepper, and salt. Boil up faii-ly, 
and serve. If allowed to stand on the fire, it is apt to burn. 

This soup may be made from the liquor in which a leg 
of mutton has been boiled, jjrovided too much salt was not 
put in with it. It is especially good when the stock is 
chicken broth. For the sick it is palatable and nutritious 
with the rice left in. When strained it makes a nice white 
table soup, and is iisually relished by all. 

Vermicelli Soup. "J* 

4 lbs. lamb, from which every particle of fat has 

been removed. 
1 lb. veal. 
A slice of corned ham. 

5 qts. water. 

Cut up the meat, cover it with a quart of water, and 
set it back on the range to heat very gradually, keeping it 
covered closely. At the end of an hour, add four quarts 



MEAT sours. 39 

boiling water, and cook until the meat is in shi'eds. Season 
with salt, sweet herbs, a chopped shallot, two teaspoonfuls 
Worcestershire sauce, and when these have boiled in the 
soup for ten minutes, strain and return to the fire. Have 
ready about a third of a pound of vermicelli (or macaroni), 
which has been boiled tender in clear water. Add this ; 
boil up once, and pour out. 

In all receipts in which ham is mentioned as seasoning, 
reference is made to corned, not smoked pork. The smoke 
imparts an undisgi^isable, and, to many, an unpleasant 
flavor, especially to delicate soups and ragouts. 

Mock-Turtle ok Calf's Head Soup. »J* 

1 large calf's head, well cleaned and washed. 
4 pig's feet, <' " " " 

This soup should always be pi-epared the day before it 
is to be served up. Lay the head and feet in the bottom of 
a lar'ge pot, and cover with a gallon of water. Let it boil 
three hoiirs, or i;ntil the flesh will slip easily from the 
bones. Take out the head, leaving in the feet, and allow 
these to boil steadily while you cut the meat from the 
head. Select with care enough of the fatty portions which 
lie on the top of the head and the cheeks to fill a tea-cup, 
and set them aside to cool. Remove the brains to a saucer 
and also set aside. Chop the rest of the meat with the 
tongue very fine, season with salt, pepper, powdered mar- 
joram and thyme, a teaspoonful of cloves, the same of mace, 
half as much allspice, and a grated nutmeg, and return to 
the pot. When the flesh falls from the bones of the pig's 
feet, take out the latter, leaving in the gelatinous meat. 
Let all boil together slowly, without removing the cover, 
for two hours more ; take the soup from the fire and set it 
away until the next day. An hour before dinner, set on 



4:0 COMMON SENSE. 

the stock to warm. When it boils strain carefully, and 
drop in the meat you have reserved, which, when cold, 
should be cut into small squares. Have these all ready as 
well as the force-meat balls. To prepare these, rub the 
yolks of five hard-boiled eggs to a paste in a Wedgewood 
mortar, or in a bowl, with the back of a silver tablespoon, 
adding gradually the brains to moisten them, also a little 
butter and salt. Mix with these two eggs beaten very 
light, flour your hands, and make this paste into balls about 
the size of a pigeon's egg. Throw them into the soup five 
minutes before you take it off the fire ; stir in a large 
tablespoonful of browned flour rubbed smooth in a little 
cold water, let it boil up, and finish the seasoning by the 
addition of a glass and a half of good wine — sherry or Ma- 
deira — and the juice of a lemon. It should not boil more 
than half an hour on the second day. Serve with sliced 
lemon. Some lay the slices \ipon the top of the soup, 
but the better plan is to pass to the guests a small dish 
containing these. 

This has been well called the " king of soups," and is 
actually more delicious than the real turtle soup. It is 
hoped no one will be afraid to undertake the preparation 
of it on account of the apparently tedious and delicate mode 
I have described. If the directions be closely followed, the 
result is sure to be satisfactory, and the task is really much 
less troublesome tlian it appears to be. 

GiBLET Soup. 

Feet, neck, pinions, and giblets of three chickens, 

or of two ducks or two geese. 
1^ lb. veal. . 
^ lb. ham. 
3 qts. water. 
Crack the bones into small pieces, chop the giblets fnoi 



MEAT SOUPS. 41 

very fine) and cut the meat into strips. Pnt all together 
over the fire, with a bunch of sweet herbs and a pinch of 
allspice. Stew slowly for two hours. J'ick out the giblets 
with a skimmer or fork, and set them aside in a pan where 
they will keep warm. Take np a teaciipful of the hot soup 
and stir into this a lai-ge tablespoouful of flour which has been 
wet with cold water and rubbed to a smooth paste ; then, 
two tablespoonfuls of butter. Return to the pot and boil 
for fifteen minutes ; season at the last with a glass of brown 
sheny and a tablespoouful of tomato or Avalnut catsup. A 
little Worcestershire sauce is an improvement. Finally, 
add the giblets, and serve. 

EiiowN Gkavy Soup. 

3 lbs. beef. 

1 carrot. 

1 turnip. 

1 head of celery. 

G onions, if small button-onions — 2, if large. 

3|- qts. watei". 

Have ready some nice dripping in a frying-pan. Slico 
the onions and fry them broAvn. Take them out and set 
them by in a covered j)an to keep warm. Cut the beef into 
bits an inch long and half an inch thick, and fry them brown 
also, turning frequently lest they should burn. Chop the 
vegetables and put them with the meat and onions into a 
covered pot. Pour on the water and let all stew together 
for two hours. Then throw in salt and pejiper and boil one 
hour longer, skimming very carefully. Strain ; put back 
over the fire ; boil up once more to make the liquid per- 
fectly clear, skim, and add a handful of vermicelli that haa 
been boiled separately and di-ained diy. The safest plan is 
to p\it in the vermicelli after the soup is poured into the 



42 COMMON SENBfc. 

tureeu. Dc not stir before it goes to table. The contents 
of the tureen should be clear as amber. Some add half a 
glass of 2yaie sherry. This is a fine show soup, and vei'j 
populai'. 

Veal and Sago Soup. 

2i lbs. veal. 

^ lb. pearl sago. 

1 pt. milk. 

4 eggs. 

3 qts. water. 

Put on the veal and water — the meat chopped finely — 
and boil for two hours until the liquid is reduced to about 
one-half the origuial quantity. Strain out the shreds of 
meat through a coarse cloth, and put the soup again over 
the fire. Meanwhile the sago should be washed in several 
waters, and soaked half an hour in warm water enough to 
cover it. Stir it into the strained broth and boil — stirring 
very often to prevent lumping or scorching — half an hour 
more. Heat the milk almost to boiling ; beat the yolks of 
the eggs very light ; mix with the milk gradually, as in 
making boiled custard, and pour — stii-ring all the Avhile — 
into the soup. Season with pepper and salt ; boil up once 
to cook the eggs, and serve. Should the liquid be too thick 
after putting in the sago, replenish with boiling water. It 
should be about the consistency of hot custard. 

This soup is very good, if chicken broth be svibstituted 
for the veal. It is very strengthening to invalids, and es- 
pecially beneficial to those suftering with colds or pulmonarj' 
affections. 

Chicken- Soyp. i^ 

2 yovuig fowls, or one full-gi'own. 

^ lb. ham. 

1 gallon of water. 



MEAT SOUPS. 4ci 

Cut the fowls into pieces as for fricassee. Put these 
with the ham into the pot with a quart of water, or enough 
to cover them fairly. Stew for an hour, if the fowls are 
tender ; if tough, until you can cut easily into the breast. 
Take out the breasts, leaving the rest of the meat in the 
pot, and add the remainder of the water — -boiling hot. Keep 
the souj) stewing slowly while you chop up the white meat 
you have selected. Rub the yolks of foui' hard-boiled eggs 
smooth in a mortar or bowl, moistening to a paste with a 
few spoonfuls of the soup. Mix with these a handful of 
fine bread-crumbs and the chopped meat, and make it into 
small balls. AVhen the soup has boiled, in all, two hours 
and a half, if the chicken be reduced to shreds, strain out 
the meat and bones. Season with salt and white pepper, 
with a bunch of chopped parsley. Drop in the prepared 
force-meat, and after boiling ten minutes to incorporate the 
ingredients well, add, a little at a time, a pint of rich milk 
thickened with flour. Boil up once and serve. 

A cliicken at least a year old would make better soup 
than a younger fowl. 

Yenison Soup. »J 

3 lbs. of venison. What are considered the in- 
ferior pieces will do. 

1 lb. ham or salt pork. 

1 onion. 

1 head of celery. 
Cut up the meat ; chop the vegetables, and put on with 
just en'^'.Tgh water to cover them, keeping on the lid of the 
pot alx the while, and stew slowly for one hour. Then add 
two quarts of boiling water, with a few blades of mace 
and a dozen whole peppers. Or, should you prefer, a little 
cayenne. Boil two hours longer, salt, and strain. Keturn 
the I'qior to the pot; stir in a tablespoonful of butter 



44 COMMON SEJ^SE. 

thicken with a tablespoonful of browned flour wet into a 
smooth thin paste with cold water; add a tablespoonful 
walnut or mushroom catsup, a teaspoonful of Worcester 
shire or other pungent sauce, and a generous glass of Ma/- 
deira or brown sherry. 

Hake or Rabbit Soup. 

Dissect the rabbit, crack the bones, and prepare precisely 
as you would the venison soup, only jiutting in three small 
onions instead of one, and a bunch of sweet herbs. Hares 
which are too tough to be cooked in any other way, make 
excellent game souj?. Also, the large gray squirrel of the 
Middle and Southern States. 

I have eaten squirrel soup that was really delicious. 

Ox-Tail Soup. 

1 ox-tail. 

2 lbs. lean beef. 
4 carrots. 

3 onions. 
Thyme. 

Cut the tail into several pieces and fry brown in butter. 
Slice the onions and carrots, and when you remove the ox- 
tail from the frying-pan, put in these and brown also. 
When done, tie them in a bag with a bunch of thyme and 
drop into the soup-pot. Lay the pieces of ox-tail in the 
same ; then the meat cut into small slices. Grate over 
them the two whole carrots, and add four quarts of cold 
water, with pepper and salt. Boil from four to six hoiirs, 
in pi-oportion to the size of the tail. Strain fifteen minutes 
before serving it, and thicken with two tablespooufuls of 
browned flour. Boil ten minutes longer. 



FISH sours. 45 

FISH SOUPS. 
Oyster Soup (No. 1). 4* 

2 qts. of oysters. 

1 qt. of milk. 

2 tablespoonfuls butter. 
1 teaciipful water. 

Strain tlie liquor from the oysters, add to it the water, 
and set it over the fire to heat slowly in a covered vessel. 
Wlien it is near boiling, season with pepper and salt, and 
stir in the milk, after which stir constantly, unless, as is 
wisest, you heat the liquor in a vessel set in a pot of boil- 
ing water. When the soup again nears the boiling-point, 
add the oysters, and let them stew until they " ruffle " on 
the edge. This will be in about five minvites. Then put in 
the butter and stir well until it is melted, when the soup is 
ready for use. 

Serve with sliced lemon and oyster or cream crackers. 
Some use mace and nutmeg in seasoning. The cro^\^ung 
excellence in oyster soup is to have it cooked just enough. 
Too mixch stewing ruins the bivalves, while an underdone 
oyster is a flabby abomination. The plumpness of the maiu 
body and ruffled edge are good indices of their right con- 
dition. 

Oyster Soup (No. 2). 

2 qts. of oysters. 

2 eggs. 

1 qt. milk. 

1 teacupful of water. 

Strain the liquor from the oysters into a saucepan, pour 
in with it the water. Season with cayenne pepper and a lit- 
tle salt, a teaspoonful of mingled nutmeg, mace, and cloves. 



40 COMMON SENSE. 

When tlie liquor is almost boiling, add Lalf the oysters 
chopped finely and boil five minutes quite briskly. Strain 
the soup and return to saucepan with the milk. Ha ve ready 
some force-meat balls, not larger than marbles, made of the 
yolks of the eggs boiled hard and rubbed to a smooth paste 
with a little butter, then mixed with six raw oysters chop- 
ped very finely, a little salt, and a raw egg well beaten, to bind 
the ingredients together. Flour your hands well and roll the 
force-meat into pellets, laying them upon a cold plate, so aa 
not to touch one another, until needed. Then put the re- 
served whole oysters into the hot soup, and when it begins to 
boil again, drop in the force-meat marbles. Boil until the 
oysters " ruffle," by which time the balls will also be done. 

Serve with sliced lemon and crackers. A liberal table- 
spoonful of biitter stii-red in gently at the last is an im- 
provement. 

Clam Soup. 

50 clams. 

1 qt. milk. 

1 pint water. 

2 tablespoonfuls butter. 

If you cannot buy the clams already opened, put them in 
a large pan or tray, and pour boiling water over them. This 
will open the shells. Take them out as fast as they unclose, 
that you may save all the liquor they contain. Drain ofi" this 
and put it over the fire with a dozen whole peppers, a few 
bits of cayenne pods, half a dozen blades of mace, and salt to 
taste. Let it boil for ten minutes, then put in the clams and 
boil half an hour quite fast, keeping the pot closely covered. 
If you dislike to see the whole spices in the tureen, strain 
them out before the clams are added. At the end of the 
half hour add the milk, which has been heated to scalding, 
not boiling, in another vessel. Boil up again, taking care 
the soup does not burn, and put in the butter. Then serve 



FISH SOUPS. 47 

without delay. If you desii-e a thicker soup, stir a heaping 
tablespoonful of rice-flour into a little cold milk, and put in 
with the quart of hot. 

Cat-fish Soup. *J« 

Few persons are aware into what a variety of tempting 
dishes this much-abused fish can be made. Those who 
have only seen the bloated, unsightly creatures that play 
the scavengers about city wharves, are excusable for enter- 
taining a prejudice against them as an article of food. Bui 
the small cat-fish of our inland lakes and streams are alto- 
gether re'spectable, except in their unfortunate name. 

6 cat-fish, in average weight half a pound apiece. 

■|- lb. salt pork. 

1 pint milk. 

2 eggs. 

1 head of celery, or a small bag of celery-seed. 

Skin and clean the fish and cut them up. Chop the 
pork into small pieces. Put these together into the pot, 
with two quarts of watei*, chopped sweet herbs, and the 
celery seasoning. Boil for an hour, or imtil fish and pork 
are in rags, and strain, if you desii-e a regular soup for a 
fii'st course. Beturn to the saucepan and add the milk, 
which should be already hot. Next the eggs, beaten to a 
froth, and a lump of butter the size of a wahiut. Boil up 
once, and serve with dice of toasted bread on the top. 
Pass sliced lemon, or walnut or butternut pickles with it. 

Eel Soup. 

Eel soup is made in precisely the same manner as cat- 
fish, only boiled longei-. A chopped onion is no detriment 
to the flavor of either, and will remove the muddy taste 
which these fish sometimes acquii-e from turbid streams. 



48 COMMON SENSE. 



Lobster Soup. 



2 qts. veal or chicken broth, well strained. 
1 large lobster. 



Boil the lobster and extract the meat, setting aside the 
coral in a cool place. Cut or choj) uj) the meat found in 
the claws. Hub the yolks of the eggs to a jiaste with a 
teaspoonful of butter. Pound and rub the claw-meat in 
the same maimer, and mix with the yolks. Beat up a raw 
egg, and stir into the paste ; season with pepper, salt, and, 
if you like, mace ; make into force-meat balls, and set away 
with the coral to cool and liarden. By this time the stock 
should be well heated, Avhen put in the rest of the lobster- 
meat cut into square bits. Boil fifteen minutes, which time 
employ in pounding the coral in a Wedgewood mortar, or 
earthenware bowl, rubbing it into a fine, even paste, with 
the addition of a few spoonfuls of the broth, gradually 
worked in until it is about the consistency of boiled starch. 
Stir very carefully into the hot soup, which shoidd, in the 
process, blush into a roseate hue. Lastly, drop in the 
force-meat balls, after which do not stir, lest they should 
break. Simmer a few minutes to cook the I'aw egg ; but, 
if allowed to boil, the soiip will darken. 

Ci'ab soup may be made in the same way, excepting the 
coralline process, crabs being destitute of that dainty. 

Green Turtle Soup. 

A glass of Madeira. 
2 onions. 

Bunch of sweet herbs. 
Juice of one lemon. 
5 qts. of water. 



FISH SOUPS. 49 

Chop lip tlie coarser parts of the turtle-meat, A^-ith the 
entrails and bones. Add to them four quarts of water, and 
stew four hours with the herbs, onions, pepper, and salt. 
Stew very slowly, but do not let it cease to boil during thia 
time. At the end of four hours strain the soup, and add 
the finer parts of the turtle and the green fat, which has 
been simmered for one hoiu- in two quarts of water. 
Thicken with browned flour ; i-eturn to the soup-pot, and 
simmer gently an hour longer. If there are eggs in the 
turtle, boil them in a separate vessel for four hours, and 
throw into the soup before taking it up. If not, put in 
force-meat balls ; then the juice of the lemon and the -wine ; 
beat up once and pour out. Some cooks add the finer 
meat before straining, boiling all together five hours ; then 
strain, thicken, and put in the green fat, cut into lumps an 
inch long. This makes a handsomer souj) than if the meat 
is left in. 

For the mock eggs, take the yolks of three hard-boiled eggs, 
and one raw egg well beaten. Rub the boiled eggs into a 
paste with a teaspoonful of butter, bind with the I'aw egg, 
roll into pellets the size and shape of turtle-eggs, and lay in 
boiling water for two minutes before dropping into the 
soup. 

Force-meat halls for ilie above. 

Six tablespoonfuls turtle-meat chopped very fine. Riib 
to a paste with the yolks of two hard-boiled eggs ; table- 
spoonful of butter, and, if convenient, a little oyster-liquor. 
Season with cayenne, mace, and half a teaspoonful of white 
Bugai-. Bind "svith a well-beaten egg; shape into ballsy 
dip in egg, then powdered cracker, fry in. butter, and di-op 
into the soup when it is served. 

IMock turtle for soups is now within the reach of every 
private family, being well preserved in air-tight cans. 



50 COMMON SENSE. 

FISH. 
Boiled Codfish. {Fresh.) »J« 

Lay the fish in cold water, sliglitly salted, for half an 
hour before it is time to cook it. Wipe it dry and put it 
into the fish-kettle with water enough to cover it, in which 
has been dissolved a little salt. Let it boil quite briskly. 
A piece of cod weighing three pounds will be cooked in half 
an hour from the time thewaterfairlyboils, if put in without 
a cloth. But by far the better plan is, when the cod has 
been wiped free of the salt and water, to wrap it in a clean 
linen cloth kept for such purposes. The cloth should be 
di'edged with flour, to prevent sticking. Sew up the edges in 
svich a manner as to envelop the fish entirely, yet have but 
one thickness of the cloth over any part. The wrapping 
should be fitted -neatly to the shape of the piece to be cook- 
ed. Fish cooked thus will requii-e twice as long to boil as 
when put into the water without such protection ; but the 
flavor is better preserved, and when unwrapped, it will not 
jiresent the sodden appearance and crumbling grain that 
disfigure most boiled fish. 

Have ready a sauce prepared thus : — 

To one gill boiling water add as much milk, and when it ia 
scalding-hot, stu* in — leaving the sauce-pan on the fire — two 
tablespoonfuls of buttei', a little at a time, that it may melt 
without oiling, a tablespoonful of flour previously wet with 
cold water, and, as this thickens, two beaten eggs. Season 
with salt and chopped parsley, and when, after one good boil, 
you withdraw it from the fire, add a dozen capers, or pickled 
nasturtium seeds, or, if you piefer, a spoonful of vinegar in 
which celery-seeds have been steeped. Put the fish into a 
hot dish, and pour the sauce over it. Some serve in a but- 
ter-boat ; but I fancy that the boiling sauce applied to the 
steaming fish imparts a ricliness it cannot gain later. Gar- 



FISH. 51 

nish with sprigs of parsley and circles of hard-boiled eggs, 
laid around the edge of the dish. 

ROCKFISH. 

Kockfish and river-bass are veiy nice, cooked as above^ 
but do not need to be boiled so long as codfish. 

Boiled Codfish. (Salt.) 

Put the fish to soak over night in lukewarm water — as 
early as eight o'clock in the evening. Change this for more 
warm water at bed-time and cover closely. Change again 
in the morning and wash off the salt. Two hours before 
dinner take out the cod, examine to see that no crystals of 
salt adhere to the under part, and plunge into vevi/ cold 
water. This makes it firm. Finally, set over the fire with 
enough lukewarm water to cover it, and boil for half an 
hour. Drain well ; lay it in a hot dish, and pour over it 
egg-sauce prepared as in the foregoing receipt, only substi- 
tuting the yolks of two hard-boiled eggs, rubbed to a paste 
with butter, for the beaten raw egg. 

This is a useful receipt for country housekeepers who 
can seldom procure fresh cod. Salt mackerel, prepared in 
the same way, will well repay the care and time reqiiii-ed, 
so superior is it to the Friday's dish of salt fish, as usually 
served. 

Should the cold fish left over be used for fish-balls — aa 
it shoiild be — it will be found that the sauce which has 
soaked into it while hot has greatly improved it. 

Codfish Balls. *J* 

Prepare the fish precisely as for boiling whole. Cut in 
pieces when it has been duly washed and soaked, and boil 
twenty minutes. Turn off" the water, and cover with fresb 



53 COMMON SENSE. 

from the boiling tea-kettle. Boil twenty minutes more ; 
dx'ain the fish very dry, and spread upon a dish to cooi. 
When perfectly cold, pick to pieces with a fork, removing 
every vestige of skin and bone, and shredding very fine. 
When this is done, add an eqiial bulk of mashed potato ; 
work into a stiff batter by adding a lump of butter and 
sweet milk, and if you want to have them very nice, a beat- 
en egg. Flour yoiir hands and make the mixture into balls 
or cakes. Droji them into boiling lard or good dripping, 
and fry to a light brown. Plainer fish-cakes may be made 
of the cod and potatoes alone, moulded round like biscuit 
In any shape the dish is popular. 

It gives me great pleasure to recommend the desiccated 
cod-fish put wp in boxes by the Boston and Philadelphia 
Salt Fish Comjiany. The fish is already cooked and shred, 
and the housekeeper is thus saved the only disagreeable 
part of the process of making this delightful breakfast 
relish — the boiling and the unsavory odor arising therefrom, 
as well as the care of soaking and jiicking out the fish. The 
balls prepared from the desiccated fish ai'e every whit equal 
in flavor to those made of the home-cooked, and can be 
ready at half-an-hour's notice. The cost is n«t more — per- 
haps less, than when one buys the cod in bulk, bones and 
aU. 

Salt Codfish stewed with Eggs. 

Prepare the fish as for balls. Heat almost to boiling 
a pint of rich, sweet milk, and stir into it, gradually and 
carefully, three eggs well beaten, a tablespoonful of bxxtter, 
a little chopped parsley and butter, with pepper, lastly the 
fish. Boil up once and turn into a deep covered dish, or 
chafing-dish lined Avith buttered toast. Eat hot for break- 
fast or supper. 



Fisn. 53 

Codfish and Potato Stew. t|« 

Soak, boil, and pick the fish, if salt, as for fisli-balls. If 
fresh, boil and pick into bits. Add an equal quantity of 
mashed potatoes, a large tablespoonful of butter and milk, 
enough to make it very soft. Put into a skillet, and add a 
very little boiling water to keep it from burning. Turn 
and toss constantly until it is smoking hot but not dry ; add 
pepper and parsley, and dish. 

Boiled Mackerel. {Fresh.) »J« 

Clean the mackerel and wipe carefully with a dry, clean 
cloth; wash them lightly with another cloth dipped in 
vinegar ; -wrap each in a coarse linen cloth (floured) basted 
closely to the shape of the fish. Put them into a pot with 
enough salted water to cover them, and boil them gently for 
half an hour. Drain them well. Take a teacupful of the 
water in which they were boiled, and put into a saucepan 
with a tablespoonful of wahiut catsup, some ancho\'y paste 
or sauce, and the juice of half a lemon. Let this boil up 
well and add a lump of butter the size of an egg, with a 
tablespoonful bro^\^led flour wet m cold water. Boil up 
again and serve in the sauce-boat. This makes a brown 
sauce. You can substitute egg-sauce if you like. Garnish 
with parsley and nasturtiimi blossoms. 

Broiled Mackerel. {Fresh.) 

Clean the mackerel, wash, and wipe dry. Split it open, 
so that when laid flat the backbone will be in the middle. 
Sprinkle lightly with salt, and lay on a buttered giidiron 
over a clear fire^ with the inside doAviiward, until it begins 
to brown ; then turn the other. When quite done, lay on 
a hot dish and butter it plentifully. Turn another hot dish 



54: COMMON SENSE. 

over tlie loAver one, and let it stand two or tliree minutes 
before sending to table. 

Broiled Mackerel. {/Salt.) 

Soak over niglit in lukewarm water. Change this early 
in the morning for very cold, and let the fish lie in this un- 
til time to cook. Then proceed as with the fresh mackerel. 

Boiled Halibut. »J* 

Lay in cold salt and water for an hour. "Wipe dry and 
score the skin in squares. Put into the kettle with cold 
salted water enough to cover it. It is so firm in texture 
that you can boil without a cloth if you choose. Let it heat 
gradually, and boil from half to three-quarters of an hour, 
in pro25ortion to the size of the piece. Four or five pounda 
will be enough for most private families. Drain and ac- 
company by egg-savice — either poured over the fish, or in a 
sauce-boat. 

Save the cold remnants of the fish and what sauce is left 
until next morning. Pick out as you would cod, mix with 
an equal quantity of mashed potato, moisten with the sauce, 
or with milk and butter if you have no sauce, put into a 
skillet, and stir until it is very hot. Do not let it burn. 
Season with pepper and salt. 

Baked Halibut. *^ 

Take a piece of halibut weighing five or six pounds, 
and lay in salt and water for two hours. Wipe dry and 
score the outer skin. Set in the baking-pan in a tolerably 
hot &ven, and bake an hour, basting often with butter and 
water heated together in a saucepan or tin cup. When a 
fork will penetrate it easily it is done. It should be of a fine 
brown. Take the gravy in the dripping-pan — add a little 



FISH. 55 

boiling water should tliere not be enotigli — stir in a table- 
spoonful of walnut catsup, a teaspoonful of Worcestershire 
sauce, the juice of a lemon, and thicken with browned floui 
previously wet with cold water. Boil up once and put intc 
sauce-boat. 

There is no finer preparation of halibut than this, which 
is, however, comparatively little known. Those who have 
eaten it usually prefer' it to boiled and broiled. Yon can 
use what is left for the same purpose as the fragments of 
boiled halibut. 

Halibut Steak. *^ 

Wash and wipe the steaks dry. Beat up two or three 
eggs, and roll out some Boston or other brittle crackers 
upon the kneading-board until they are fine as dust. Dip 
each steak into the beaten egg, then into the bread crumbs 
(when you have salted the fish), and fry in hot fat, lard, or 
nice dripping. 

Or, you can broil the steak upon a buttered gridiron, 
over a clear fire, first seasoning with salt and pepper. When 
done, lay in a hot dish, butter well, and cover closely. 

Devilled Halibut. 

Mince a pound of cold boiled or baked halibut, or the 
fragments of halibut steak, and mix "vvitli it the follow- 
ing dressing : The yolks of three hard-boiled eggs rubbed 
smooth with the back of a silver spoon, or in a Wedgewood 
mortar, and when there remain no lumps in it, work into 
a soft paste with a tablespoonful salad oil. Next beat in 
two teaspoonfuls white sugar, a teaspoonful made mustard, 
a pinch of cayenne, teaspoonful salt, one of Worcestershire 
Bauce, a little anchovy paste if you have ifc, and finally; 
a little at a time to prevent lumping, a small teacupful of 
vinegar in which celery-seed have been steeped. It is easy 



56 . COMMON SENSE. 

to keep a bottle of this on hand for salads and sauces. Stii 
all thoroughly into the minced fish, garnish with a chain 
of the whites of the eggs cut into rings, with a small round 
slice of pickled beet laid within each link, and you have a 
piquant and pretty salad for the supper-table. 

Boiled Salmon. [Fresh.) tj^ 

Wrap the fish, when you have v/ashed and wiped it, 
in a clean linen cloth — not too thick — baste it up securely, 
and put into the fish-kettle. Cover ^vith cold water in 
which has been melted a handful of salt. Boil slowly, al- 
lowing about a qviarter of. an hour to each pound. When 
the time is up, rip open a corner of the cloth and test the 
salmon with a fork. If it penetrate easily, it is done. If 
not, hastily pin up the cloth and cook a little longer. Skim 
otf the scum as it rises to the top. Have ready in another 
sauce-pan a pint of cream — or half milk and half cream will 
do — which has been heated in a vessel set in boiling water ; 
stir into this a large spoonful of butter, a little salt and 
chopped parsley, and a half-gill of the water in which the 
fish is boiled. Let it boil up once, stirring all the while — - 
or, what is better, do not remove from the inner vessel. 
When the fish is done, take it instantly fi'om the kettle, 
lay it an instant upon a folded cloth to absorb the drop- 
pings ; transfer with great care, for fear of breaking, to a 
hot dish, and pour the boiled cream over it, reserving 
enough to fill a small sauce-boat. Garnish with curled 
parsley and circular slices of liard-boiled yolks — leaving out 
the whites of the eggs. 

After serving boiled salmon with cream-sauce, you will 
never be quite content Avith any other. If you cannot get 
cream, boil a pint of milk and thicken with arrow-root. It 
is not so nice, but many will not detect the difference — real 
cream being a rare commodity in town. 



FISH. 57 

You may pickle what is left, if it is in one piece. Or^ 
devil it, as I have directed you to treat cold halibut. Or^ 
mince, mix with mashed potato, milk, and butter, and stii 
into a sort of stew, Oi", once again, mix with mashed po- 
tato, milk, butter, and a raw egg well-beaten ; make into 
cake? or balls, and fry in hot lard or dripping. At any 
rate, let none of it be lost, it being at once one of our most 
expensive and most delicious fish. 

Baked Salmon. *J« 

Wash and wipe dry, and rub with pepper and salt. 
Some add a soup^on of cayenne and powdered mace. Lay 
the fish upon a grating set over your baking-pan, and roast 
or bake, basting it freely with butter, and, toward the last, 
with its own drippings only. Should it brown too fast, 
cover the top with a sheet of white paper until the whole 
is cooked. When it is done, transfer to a hot dish and 
cover closely, and add to the gravy a little hot water thick- 
ened with arrow-root, rice, or wheat flour, — wet, of course, 
first with cold water, — a great spoonful of light tomato sauce, 
and the juice of a lemon. Boil up and serve in a sauce- 
boat, or you can serve Avith cream sauce, made as for boiled 
salmon. Gar-uish handsomely with alternate sprigs of pars- 
ley and the bleached tops of celery, with ruby bits of firm 
currant jelly here and there. This is a "fine dish for a din- 
ner-party. A glass of sherry improves the first-named 

sauce. 

Salmon Steaks. ^ 

Dry well with a cloth, dredge with flour, and lay them 
upon a well-buttered gridiron, over clear hot coals. Turn 
with a broad-bladed knife slipped beneath, and a flat wire 
egg-beater above, lest the steak should break. When done 
to a light brown, lay in a hot dish, butter each steak, sea- 
soning with salt and pepper, cover closely, and serve. 
3* 



58 COMMON SENSE. 

Pickled Salmon. {Fresh.) *^ 
Having cleaned your fish, cut into pieces of a con- 
venient size to go into the fish-kettle, and boil in salted 
water as for the table. Drain it very dry, wipe it with a 
clean cloth, and set it aside until next morning. 

Make pickle enough to cover it in the following propor- 
tions : 2 quarts vinegar, a dozen blades of mace, dozen 
white peppers, dozen cloves, two teaspoonfuls made mus- 
tard, three tablespoonfuls white sugar, and a pint of the 
water in which the fish was boiled. Let them boil up once 
hard, that you may skim the pickle. Should the spices 
come away with the scum in large quantities, pick them 
out and return to the kettle. Set the liquor away in an 
earthenware jar, closely covered to keep in the flavor. 
Next morning hang it over a brisk fire in a bell-metal 
kettle (covered), and heat to boiling. Meanwhile, pi'epare 
the salmon by cutting into pieces an inch and a half long 
and half an inch wide. Cut cleanly and regularly with a 
sharp knife. When they are all ready, and the liquor is on 
the boil, drop them carefully into the kettle. Let the 
pickle boil up once to make sure the salmon is heated 
through. Have ready some air-tight glass jars, such as 
you use for canning fruit and tomatoes. Take the salmon 
from the kettle, while it is still on the stove or range, with 
a wire egg-beater, taking care you do not break the pieces. 
Drop them rapidly into the jar, packing closely as you go 
on ; fill with the boiling pickle until it overflows, screw on 
the top, and set away in a dark, cool place. Pi-oceed in 
t)ie same way with each can until all are full. Salmon 
thus put up will keep good for years, as I can testify from 
experience, and will well repay the trouble of prepai'ation. 
You can vary the seasoning to your taste, adding a shallot 
or two minced very fine, some celery and small pods of 
cayenne pepper, which always look well in vinegar. 



Fisu. 59 

Be sure that the contents of the kettle ai'e boiling ■whet 
transferred to the cans, that they are not allowed time to 
cool in the transit, that the elastic on the can is properly 
adjusted, and the top screwed down tightly, and success ia 
certain. I would call the attention of those who are fond 
of the potted spiced salmon, sold at a high price in gro- 
cery-stores, to this receipt for making the same luxury at 
home. It costs less by one-half, is as good, and is always 
on hand. 

Pickled Salmon. (Salt.) 

At certain seasons of the year fresh salmon cannot be 
procured, even by the dwellers in cities, while those who live 
in the country sometimes do not see it from one year's end 
to the other, Bvit dried salmon can always be had in any 
tolerably well-kept grocery, and a very nice relish prepared 
from it. 

Wash the salmon in two or three waters, rubbing it 
lightly with a coarse cloth to remove the salt-crystals. Then 
soak over night in tepid water. Exchange this in the morn- 
ing for ice-cold, and let the fish lie in the latter for three 
hours. Take it out, wipe dry, and cut in strij)s as dii-ected 
in the foregoing receipt. Drop these, when all are ready, 
in a saucepan of boiling watei-, placed alongside of a kettle 
of pickle prepared as for fresh salmon. Beside these have 
your air-tight jars, covers laid in readiness, and when the 
salmon has boiled five minutes — fairly boiled, not simmered 
— fish out the pieces with your wdi-e spoon, jjack rapidly 
into your can; fill up with the boiling pickle from the 
other kettle, and seal instantly. In two days the pickled 
salmon will be fit for use, and is scarcely distinguishable 
from that made of fresh fish. It has the advantage of 
being always procurable, and of comparative cheapness, and 
in the coimtry is a valuable stand-by in case of unexpected 
supper company. 



60 COMMON SENSE. 

Smoked Salmon. {Broiled.) 

Take a piece of raw smoked salmon tlie size of youf 
hand, or larger in jiroportion to tlie number wlio are to sit 
down to supper. Wash it in two waters, rubbing off the 
salt. Lay in a skillet with enough warm — not hot — water 
to cover it ; let it simmer fifteen minutes, and boil five. 
Remove it, wipe dry, and lay on a buttered gridii-on to broil. 
When it is nicely browned on both sides, transfer to a hot 
dish ; butter liberally, and pepper to taste. Garnish with 
hillocks of grated horse-radish interspersed with sprays of 
fresh or pickled fennel-seed, or with parsley. 

Raw smoked salmon is in common use ujjon the supper- 
table, cut into smooth strips as long as the middle finger, 
and I'ather wider; arranged neatly upon a garnished dish, 
and eaten with pepper-sauce or some other pungent condi- 
ment. 

Boiled Shad. {Fresh.) *J« 

Clean, wash, and wipe the fish. A roe shad is best for 
this pu.rpose. Cleanse the roes thoroughly, and having 
sprinkled both shad and eggs with salt, wrap in separate 
cloths and put into the fish-kettle, side by side. Cover with 
salted water, and boil from half an hour to three-quarters, 
in proportion to the size. Experience is the best rule as to 
the time. Wlien you have once cooked fish to a turn, note 
the weight and time, and you will be at no loss thereafter. 
A good rule is to make a pencilled memorandum in the 
margin of the receipt-book opposite certain receipts. 

Serve the shad upon a hot dish, with a boat of drav/n 
butter mingled with chopped egg and parsley, or egg-sauce. 
Lay the roes aboiit the body of the fish. Garnish witlt 
capers and slices of hard-boiled eggs. 



FISH. 61 

Boiled SmvD. (Salt.) 

In those States where shad are plenty they are salted, 
and used freely, as are salt mackerel elsewhere. They forni 
a delightful breakfast-di-sh, and ai'e welcome on the sup2)er- 
table on winter nights. 

Soak the fish six or seven hours in warm water, 
changing it several times ; wipe off all the salt and immerse 
ia ice-cold water. When it has lain in this an hour, put 
into a fish-kettle with enough fresh v/ater to cover it, and 
boil from fifteen to twenty minvites, in proportion to the 
size. Serve in a hot dish, witli a large lump of butter 
spi'ead over the fish. 

Broiled Shad. [Fresh.) s{« 

"Wash, wipe, and split the fish. Sprinlde with salt and 
pepper, and lay it vipon a buttered gridiron, inside down- 
ward. When the lower side is browned, tvirn the fish. 
One of medium size will be done in about twenty minutes. 
Serve upon a hot dish, and lay a good 25iece of butter upon 
the fish. 

Broiled Shad. {Salt.) 

Soak over night in lukewarm water. Take out in tho 
morning and transfer to ice-cold for half an hour. Wipe 
very dry, and bioil as you do fresh shad. 

Fried Shad. 

This is a popular dish upon Southern tables, and is good 
anywhere. Clean, wash, and wipe a fine roe-shad ; split and 
cut each side into four pieces, leaving out the head, and re- 
mo^'ing fins and tail. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and 
dredge with fiour. Have ready \ frying-pan of boiling hot 
lard or drippings ; put in the fish and fry brown, turning at 
the end of five minutes to cook the other side. Fry the 



62 COlkLMON SENSE. 

roe in the same way ; lay tlie fish in the middle of the dish, 
and the roe outside of it; garnish with water-cresses and 
s^^rigs of pickled cauliflower, and eat with catsup. 

Baked Shad. *J« 

Clean, wash, and wipe the fish, which should be a large 
one. Make a stuffing of grated bread-crumbs steeped in 
sweet milk, butter, salt, pepper, and sweet herbs, moistened 
with a beaten egg. Stuff the shad and sew it up. Lay it 
in the baking-pan, with a cupful of water to keep it from 
burning, and bake an hour, basting with butter and water, 
until it is tender throughout and well browned. Take it 
up, pvit in a hot dish and cover tightly, while you boil up 
the gravy with a great sjjoonful of catsup, a tablespoonful 
of browned flour which has been wet with cold Avater, the 
juice of a lemon, and, if you want to have it very fine, a glass 
of sherry or Madeira. Garnish with sliced lemon and 
water-cresses. You may pour the gravy around the fish, or 
serve in a sauce-boat. Of course you take out the thread 
with which it has been sewed up before serving the fish. 

Boiled Sea-Bass. 

Clean and put the fish into the fish-kettlo, with salted 
water enough to cover it when you have enveloped it in 
the fish-cloth. A medium-sized fish will be done in a little 
over half an hour. But do not boil too fast. When done, 
drain and serve in a hot dish. Lay sliced boiled eggs upon 
and about it, and serve with egg-sauce, mingled with capers 
or nasturtium seed. 

Fried Sea-Bass. 

Use smaller fish for this purpose than for boiling. 
Clean, wipe dry, inside and out, dredge with flour and 
season with salt. Fi-y in hot butter or dripping. A mix 



FISH. C3 

ture, half butter, half lard, is good for frying fish. The bass 
should be done to a delicate brown — not to a crisp. Thft 
fashion affected by some cooks of di'ying fried fish to a cmisi 
is simply abominable. 

Fried bass are a most acceptable breakfast dish. 

Sturgeon Ste.uc. 

Skin the steaks carefully and lay in salted water (cold) 
for an hour, to remove the oily taste, so oflensive to most 
palates. Then wipe each steak dry, salt, and broil over hot 
coals on a buttered gridiron. Serve in a hot dish when 
yoii have buttered and peppered them, and send up gar- 
nished with parsley and accompanied by a small glass dish 
containing sliced lemon. 

Or, 
You can pour over them a sauce prepared in this way : — 

Put a tablespoonful of butter into a frying-pan, and stir 
until it is brown — not burned. Add a half-teacupful of 
boiling water in which has been stirred a tablespoonful of 
browned flour previously wet with cold water. Add salt, 
a teaspoonful Worcestershire savxce or anchovy, the juice of 
a lemon, and let it boil up well. Poiu- over the steaks when 
you have arranged them in the dish. 

Baked Sturgeon. 

A piece of sturgeon weighing five or six pounds is 
enough for a handsome dish. Skin it and let it stand in 
salt and water for half an hour. Parboil it to remove the 
oil. Make a dressing of bread-crumbs, minute bits of fat 
salt pork, sweet herbs, and butter. Gash the upjier part of 
the fish quite deeply, and rub this force-meat well in ; put 
in a baking-pan with a little water to keep it from burning, 
and bake for an hour. 



6-i CXJMMON SENSE, 

Serve witli a sauce of drawn butter, in which has been 
stirred a spoonful of caper sauce and another of catsuj). 
Tiiis is a Vii-ginia receipt, and an admirable one. 

Mayoxxaise. {Fish.) 

Take a pound or so of cold boiled fish (halibut, rock, oi 
cod) , cut — not chop — into pieces an inch in length. Mix in 
a bowl a dressing as follows : the yolks of four boiled egga 
rubbed to a smooth paste with salad oil ; add to these salt, 
pepper, mustard, two teaspoonfuls white sugar, and, lastly, 
six tablespoonfids of vinegar. Beat the mixture until 
light, and just before pouring it over the fish, stir in lightly 
the frothed white of a raw egg. Serve the fish in a glass 
dish, with six tablespoonfuls of vinegar and half the dress- 
ing stirred in with it. Spread the remainder over the top, 
and lay blanched lettuce-leaves around the edges, to be eaten 
with it. 

Baked Salmon-Trout. ^ 

Those who have eaten this prince of game fish in the 
Adirondacks, within an hour after he has left the lake, will 
agree with me that he never has such justice done him at 
any other time as when baked with cream. 

Handle the beauty with gentle respect while cleaning, 
•washing, and wiping him, and lay him at full length, still 
respectfully, in a baking-pan, with just enough water to 
keep him from scorching. If large, score the back-bone 
with a sharp knife, taking care not to mar the comeliness 
of his red-spotted sides. Bake slowly, basting often with 
butter and water. By the time he is done — and he should 
be so well-looked after that his royal robe hardly shows a 
seam or rent, and the red spots are still distinctly visible — ■ 
have ready in a saucepan a cup of cream — diluted with a 
few spoonfuls of hot water, lest it should clot in heating— 



FISH. 65 

in whicli has been stirred cautiously two tablespoonfuls of 
melted butter and a little chopped parsley. He?t this in a 
vessel set within another of boiling water, add the gravy 
from the drippiiig-])an, boil up once to thicken, and when 
the trout is laid — always respectfully — in a hot dish, pour 
the sauce around him as he lies in state. He will take kind- 
ly to the creamy bath, and your guests will take kindly to 
him. Garnish with a wi-eath of criiuson nasturtium-blooma 
and dainty sprigs of parsley, arranged by your own hands 
on the edge of the dish, and let no sharply-spiced sauces 
come near him. They would but mar his native richness — 
the flavor he brought vv-ith him from the lake and wild-wood. 
Salt him liglitly, should he need it, eat and be happy. 

If the above savor of bathos rather than " common 
sense," my excuse is, I have lately eaten baked salmon- 
trout with cream-gravy. 

Boiled Salmon-Trout, t^ 

Clean, wash, and dry the trout ; envelop in a thin cloth 
fitted neatly to the shape of the fish, lay within a fish-kettle, 
cover with salted water (cold), and boil gently half an hour 
or longer, according to the size. When done, un\\i-ap and 
lay in a hot dish. Pour around it ci*eam-sauce made as for 
baked salmon-trout — only, of course, with the omission of 
the fish-gravy — and serve. 

Fried Trout. 

Brook trout are generally cooked in this way, and form 
a rarely delightful breakfast or sujiper dish. 

Clean, wash, and diy the fish, roll lightly in flour, and 
fry in butter or clarified dripping, or butter and lard. Let 
the fat be hot, fry quickly to a delicate brown, and take up 
the instant they are done. Lay for an instant upon a hoi 



6G COMMON SENSE. 

folded liapkin, to absorb whatever grease may cling to tlicii 
speckled sides; then range side by side in a heated dish; 
garnish, and send to table. Use no seasoning except salt, 
and that only when tlie fish are fried in lard or unsalted 
di'ippiiig. 

Fried Pickerel, *J« 

The pickerel ranks 'next to trout among game-fish, and 
should be fried in the same manner. Esjiecially — and I 
urge this with groaning of spirit, in remembrance of the 
many times in which I have had my sense of fitness, not to 
say my appetite, outraged by seeing the gallant fish brought 
to table di-ied to a crisp throughout, all his juices wasted 
and sweetness utterly departed — especially, do not fry him 
slowly and too long ; and when he is done, take liim out of 
the grease ! 

Cream Pickerel. ►J* 

Reserve your largest pickerel — those over three pounds in 
weight — for baking, and proceed with them as with baked 
salmon-trout — cream-gi-avy and all. If you cannot afford 
cream, substitute rich milk, and thicken with rice or Avheat 
flour. The fish are better cooked in this way than any 
other. 

Fried Perch, akd other Pan-fish. 

Clean, wash, and dry the fish. Lay them in a large 
flat dish, salt, and dredge with flour. Have ready a frying- 
pan of hot dripping, lard, or butter; put in as many fish as 
the pan will hold without crowding, and fry to a light 
broAvn. Send up hot in a chafing-dish. 

The many varieties of pan-fish — porgies, flounders, river- 
bass, weak-fish, white-fish, etc., may be cooked in like man- 
ner. In serving, lay the head of each fish to the tail of th( 
one next him. 



FISH. 07 

Stewed Cat-fish. *^ 

Skiu, clean, and cut off the horribly homely heads. 
Sprinkle with salt, to remove any muddy taste they may 
have contracted frorfi the flats or holes in which they have 
fed, and let them He in a cool place for an hour or so. 
Then put them into a saucepan, cover with cold water, and 
stew veiy gently for from half to three-quarters of an hour, 
according to their size. Add a chopped shallot or button- 
onion, a bunch of chopped parsley, a little pepper, a large 
tablespoonful of butter, a tablespoonful flour mixed to a 
paste with cold "water ; boil up once, take out the fish care- 
fully, and lay in a deep dish. Boil up the gi'avy once 
more, and pour over the fish. Send to table in a covered 
dish. 

Fried Cat-fish. *J« 

Skin, clean, and remove the heads. Sprinkle with salt, 
and lay aside for an hour or more. Have ready two or 
three eggs beaten to a froth, and, in a flat dish, a quantity 
of powdered cracker. Di]) the fish first in the egg, then in 
the cracker, and fry quickly in hot lard or dripping. Take 
up as soon as done. 

Cat-fish cooked in this maimer are sweet and savory — 
a trifle too rich for delicate persons, but very nice for those 
who are blessed with good digestions. 

Cat-fish Chowder. 

Skin, clean, and cut off the heads. Cut the fish into 
pieces t-^o inches long, and put into a pot with some* fat 
pork ^iit into shreds — a pound to a dozen medium-si^ed 
fish, two chopped onions, or half a dozen shallots, a bunch 
of sweet herbs, and jjepper. The jjork will salt it sulfi- 
ciently. Stew slowly for three-quarters of an hour. Then 
Btii" in a cup of milk, thickened with a tablespoonful of 



68 COMMON SENSE. 

flour ; take up a cupful of the hot liquor, and stir, a little ai 
a time, into two well-beaten eggs. Return this to the pot ; 
throw in half a dozen Boston or butter crackers, split in 
half; let all boil vip once, and turn into a tiireen. Pasa 
sliced lemon, or cucumber pickles, also sliced, with it. Take 
out the backbones of the fish before serving. 

Stewed Eels. *^ 

Inquire, before buying, where they were caught, and 
give so decided a preference to country eels as to refuse 
those fattened upon the ofial of city wharves. Kor are the 
largest eels the best for eating. One weighing a pound is 
better for your purpose than a bulky fellow that weighs 
three. 

Skin and clean, carefully extracting all the fat from the 
inside. Cut into lengths of an inch and a half; put into a 
saucepan, with enough cold water to cover them ; throw in 
a little salt and choj^ped parsley, and stew slowly, closely cov- 
ered, for at least one hour. Add, at the last, a great spoon- 
ful of butter, and a little flour wet with cold water, also pep- 
per. Serve in a deej) dish. The appearance and odor of 
this stew are so pleasing as often to overcome the preju- 
dices of those who " V/ouldn't touch an eel for the world ! 
They look so like snakes ! " And those who have tasted 
once rarely enter a second demurrer. 

Fkied Eels. 

^Prepare as for stewing ; roll in flour, and fry, in hot 
lard or dripping, to a light brown. 

Chowder {jVo. 1). sj« 

Take a pound of salt pork, cut into strips, and soak in 
hot water five minutes. Cover the bottom of a jjot with a 



risn. 69 

layer of this. Cut four pounds of cod or sea-bass into 
pieces two inclies square, and lay enough of these on the 
pork to cover it. FoIIoav %\'ith a layer of chopped onions, 
a little parsley, siunmer savoiy, and pepper, either black ot 
cayenne. Then a layer of split Boston, or butter, or whole 
cream crackers, which have been soaked in warm water un- 
til moist thi'ough, but not ready to break. Above this lay 
a stratum of pork, and repeat the order given above — onions, 
seasoning (not too much), crackers, and pork, until your 
materials are exliausted. Let the topmost layer be buttered 
crackers, well soaked. Pour in enough cold water to cover 
all barely. Cover the pot, stew gently for an hour, watch- 
ing that the water does not sink too low. Should it leave 
the upjjer layer exposed, replenish cautiously from the 
boiling tea-kettle. When the chowder is thoroughly done, 
take out with a perforated skimmer and put into a tureen. 
Thicken the gravy with a tablespoonful of flour and about 
the same quantity of bixtter. Boil up and pour over the 
chowder. Send sliced lemon, pickles, and stewed tomatoes 
to the table with it, that the guests may add, if they like. 

Chowder [N'o. 2). 

Slice six large onions, and fry them in the gravy of fried 
salt pork. Cut five pounds of bass or cod into strips thi-ee 
inches long and one thick, and line the bottom of a pot with 
them. Scatter a few slices of onion upon them, a little salt, 
half a dozen whole black peppers, a clove or two, a pinch of 
thyme and one of parsley, a tablespoonful tomato or mush- 
room catsup, and six oysters ; then comes a layer of oyster 
crackers, well-soaked in milk and buttered thickly. Another 
layer of fish, onions, seasoning, and crackers, and so on imtil 
all are used up. Cover with water, boil slowly for an hour 
and pour out. Serve with capers and sliced lemon. A cup of 
oyster-liquor added to the chowder while boiling improves it 



70 COMMON SENSE. 

SHELL-FISH. 

To Boil a Lobster. 

Clioose a lively one — not too large, lest lie should be 
tough. Put a handful of salt into a pot of boiling water, 
and having tied the claws together, if your fish-merchant 
has not ah-eady skewered them, plunge him into the pi'e 
pared bath. He will be restive under this vigorous hydro- 
pathic treatment ; but allay your tortured sympathies by 
the X'eflection that he is a cold-blooded animal, destitute of 
imagination, and that pain, according to some philosophers, 
exists only in the imagination. However this may be, hia 
suffering will be short-lived. Boil from half an hour to an 
hour, as his size demands. When done, draw out the scarlet 
innocent, and lay him, face downward, in a sieve to dry. 
When cold, split open the body and tail, and crack the claws 
to extract the meat, thi'owing away the " lady-fingers " and 
the head. Lobsters are seldom served without dressing, iip- 
on private tables, as few persons care to take the trouble of 
preparing their own salad after taking their seats at the 
board. 

Devilled Lobster. 

Extract the meat from a boiled lobster, as for salad, and 
mince it finely; reserve the coral. Season highly with 
mustard, cayenne, salt, and some pungent sauce. Toss and 
stir until it is well mixed, and put into a porcelain sauce- 
pan (covered), with just enough hot water to keep it from 
biirniug. Bub the coral smooth, moistening with vinegar 
until it is thin enough to pour easily, then stir into the con- 
tents of the saucepan. It is necessary to prepare the dress- 
ing, let me say, before the lobster-meat is set on the fire. 
It ought to boil up but once before the coi'al and vinegar 
are put in. Next^stii- in a heaping tablespoonful of butter 



SHELL-FISH. 71 

and when it boils again, take tlie pan from tlie fire. Too 
much cooking toughens the meat. This is a famous supper 
dish for sleighiug-parties. 

Lobster Croquettes. »|* 

To the meat of a well-boiled lobster, chopped fine, add 
pepper, salt, and powdered mace. Mix with this one-quarter 
as much bread-crumbs, well rubbed, as you have meat; 
make into ovates, or pointed balls, with two tablespoonfula 
of melted I) utter. Roll these in beaten egg, then in pulver- 
ized cracker, and fry in butter or very nice sweet lard. Serve 
dry and hot, and gai'nish with crisped parsley. 

This is a delicious supper dish or entree at dinner. 

Devilled Crab. ^ 

This is prepared according to the foregoing receipt — 
substituting for the coral in the vinegar some pulverized 
cracker, moistened first with a tablespoonful of rich cream. 
You can serve up in the back-shell of the crab if you like. 
Send in with cream crackers, and stick a sprig of parsley 
in the top of each heap, ranging the shells upon a large flat 
dish. 

Crab Salad. 

INIince the meat and dress as in lobster salad. Send in 
the back shell of the crab. 

Soft Crabs. 4* 

Many will not eat hard-shell crabs, considering them 
indigestible, and not sufficiently palatable to compensate 
for the risk they run in eating them. And it must be 
owned that they are, at theii- best, but an indifterent sub- 
stitute for the more aristocratic lobstei-. But in the mora- 



♦ 



72 COMMON SENSE. 

iiig of life, for him so often renewed, his crabship is a 
different creature, and greatly affected by epicures. 

Do not keej) the crabs over night, as the shells harden 
in twenty-four hours. Pull oft' the spongy substance from 
the sides and the sand-bags. These are the only jiortions 
that are uneattible. Wash well, and wipe dry. Have ready 
a pan of seething hot lard or butter, and fry them to a fine 
brown. Put a little salt into the lard. The butter will 
need none. Send nj) hot, garnished with parsley. 

"Water-Turtles, or Terrapii^s. 

Land-terrapins, it is hardly necessary to say, are uneat- 
able, but the large turtle that frequents our mill-ponds and 
rivers can be converted into a relishable article of food. 

Plunge the turtle into a pot of boiling water, and let 
him lie there five minutes. You can then skin the under- 
pavt easily, and pvill oft' the horny parts of the feet. Lay 
him for ten minutes in cold salt and water ; then put into 
more hot water — salted, but not too much. Boil until 
tender. The time will depend upon the size and age. 
Take him out, drain, and wipe dry ; loosen the shell carefully, 
not to break the flesh ; cut open also with care, lest you 
touch the gall-bag with the knife. Remove this with the 
entrails and sand-bag. Cut wp all the rest of the animal 
into small bits, season with pepper, salt, a chopped onion, 
iweet herbs, and a teaspoonful of some spiced sauce, or a 
tablespoonful of catsiip — walnut or mushroom. Save the 
juice that runs from the meat, and put all together into 
a saucepan with a closely-fitting top. Stew gently fifteen 
minutes, stirring occasionally, and add a great spoonful of 
butter, or a teaspoonful browned flour wet in cold water, a 
glass of brown sherry, and lastly, the beaten yolk of an 
egg, mixed with a little of the hot liquor, that it may not 



BHELL-FISn. 73 

rurdle. Boil up once, and turn into a covered dish. Send 
around green pickles and delicate slices of dry toast with it. 

Ste'uED Oysters. »J« 

Drain the liquor from two quarts of firm, plurnp oysters; 
mix with it a small teacupful of hot water, add a little salt 
and pepper, and set over the fire in a saucepan. When it 
comes to a boil, add a large cupful of rich milk. (Cream is 
better.) Let it boil up once, put in the oysters, let them 
boil for five minutes or less — not more. When they " ruf- 
fle," add two tablespoonfuls of butter, and the instant it is 
melted and well stirred in, take the saucepan from the fire. 
Serve with oyster or cream crackers, as soon as possible. 
Oysters become tough and tasteless when cooked too mvich, 
or left to stand too long after they are withdrawn from the 
fire, A good and safe plan is, to heat the milk in a sepa- 
rate vessel set in another of hot water, and after it is 
mingled with the liquor and oysters, stir assiduously or it 
may " catch," as the cooks say — i. e., scorch on the sides or 
bottom of the saucepan. 

Fried Oysters. *^ 

Use for flying the largest and best oysters you can find. 
Take them carefully from the liquor ; lay them in rows upon 
a clean cloth, and press another lightly upon them to absom 
the moisture. Have ready several beaten eggs, and in an- 
other dish some crackers crushed fine. In the frying-pan 
heat enough nice butter to cover the oyst-ers entirely. Dip 
each oyster first in the egg, then into the cracker, rolling it 
over that it may become completely incrusted. Drop them 
carefully into the frying-pan, and fry quickly to a light 
V)rown. If the butter is hot enough they will soon be ready 
to take out. Test it by putting in one oyster before you 
4 • 



<db COiEVrON SENSE. 

lisk tlie rest. Do not let them lie in the pan an instant aftei 
they are done. Serve dry, and let the dish be warm. A 
chafing-dish is best. 

Oyster Tritteks. ►J* 

Drain the liquor from the oysters, and to a cupful of thia 
add the same quantity of milk, three eggs, a little salt, and 
flour enough for a thin batter. Chop the oysters and stir 
into the batter. Have ready in the frying-pan a few spoon- 
fuls of lard, or half lard, half butter ; heat very hot, and drop 
the oyster-batter in by the tablespoonful. Try a spoonful 
first, to satisfy yourself that the lard is hot enough, and that 
the fritter is of the right size and consistency. Take rapidly 
from the pan as soon as they are done to a pleasing yellow- 
brown, and send to table very hot. 

Some fry the oyster whole, enveloped in batter, one in 
each fritter. In this case, the batter shoiild be thicker than 
if the chopped oyster were to be added. 

Scalloped Oysters. »J< 

Crush and roll several handfuls of Boston or other fri- 
able crackers. Put a layer in the bottom of a buttered 
pudding-dish. Wet this with a mixture of the oyster liquor 
and milk, slightly warmed. Next, have a layer of oysters. 
jflprinkle with salt and pepper, and lay small bits of butter 
upon them. Then another layer of moistened crumbs, and 
so on until the dish is full. Let the top layer be of crumbs, 
thicker than the rest, and beat an egg into the milk you 
pour over them. Stick bits of butter thickly over it, cover 
the dish, set it in the oven, bake half an hour ; if the dish 
is large, remove the cover, and brown by setting it upon the 
upper grating of oven, or by holding a hot shovel over it. 



SHELL-FISn. 75 

Broiled Oysters. kJ* 

Clioose large, fat oysters; wipe tliem veiy dry; sprinklo 
salt and cayenne pepper upon them, and broil upon one ol 
the small gridirons sold for that purpose. You can dredge 
the oyster with flour if you -wish to have i t brown, and some 
fancy the juices are better kept in in this way. Others 
dislike the crust thus formed. Butter the gridiron well, 
and let your fire be hot and cleai-. If the oyster drip, with- 
draw the gridiron for an instant until the smoke clears 
away. Broil quickly and dish hot, putting a tin}" piece of 
butter, not larger than a pea, upon each oyster. 

Cream Oysters ox the Half-shell. 

Pour into your inner saucepan a cup of hot water, an- 
other of milk, and one of cream, vrith a little salt. Set into 
a kettle of hot water until it boils, when stir in two table- 
spoonfuls of butter and a little salt, Avith white pepper. 
Take fi'om the fii'e and add two heaping tablespoonfuls of ai'- 
row-root, rice-flour, or corn-starch, wet with cold milk. By 
this time your shells should be washed and buttered, and a 
fine oyster laid within each. Of course, it is selon les regies 
to use oyster-shells for this purpose ; but you will find clam- 
shells more roomy and more manageable, because more re- 
gular in shape. Range these closely in a large baking-pan, 
propping them with clean pebbles or fragments of shell, if 
they do not seem inclined to retain their contents. Stir the 
cream very hard and fill up each shell with a spoon, taking 
care not to spill any in the pan. Bake five or six minutes 
in a hot oven after the shells become warm. Serve on the 
shell. Some substitute oyster-liquor for the water in tbe 
mixture, and use all milk instead of creaoi. 



76 COMMON SENSE. 

Oyster Omelet. »J« 

12 oysters, if large; double the number of small ones. 

6 eggs. 

1 cup milk. 

1 tablespoonful butter. 

Chopped parsley, salt, and pepper. 

Chop the oysters very finely. Beat the yolks and whites 
of the eggs separately as for nice cake — the white until it 
stands in a heap. Put three tablespoonfuls of butter in a 
fryingrpan, and heat while you are mixing the omelet. Stir 
the milk into a deep dish with the yolk, and season. Next 
put in the chojiped oysters, beating vigorovisly as you add 
them gradually. When they are thoroughly incor])orated, 
j)Our in the spoonful of melted butter ; finally, whip in the 
whites lightly and with as few strokes as possible. If the 
butter is hot, and it ought to be, that the omelet may not 
stand uncooked, put the mixtui*e into the pan. Do not stir 
it, but when it begins to stifii'en — " to set," in culinary 
phrase, slip a broad-bladed, round-pointed dinner-knife 
around the sides, and cautiously under the omelet, that the 
butter may reach every part. As soon as the centre is 
fairly " set," turn out into a hot dish. Lay the latter bot- 
tom upward over the frying-pan, which must be turned up- 
side-down dexterously. This brings the browned side of 
the omelet uppermost. This omelet is delicious and easily 
made. 

Oyster Pie. »J« 

Make a rich puff-paste ; roll out twice as thick as for a 
fruit-pie for the top-crust — about the ordinary thickness for 
the lower. Line a jjudding-dish with the thinner, and fill 
with crusts of dry bread or light crackers. Some use a 
folded towel to fill the interior of the pie, but the above 
expedient is pi-eferable. Butter the edges of the dish, that 



SHELL-FISH. 71 

you may be able to lift the upper crust without breaking. 
Cover tlie mock-pie with the thick crust, ornamented heavily 
at the edge, that it may lie the more quietly, and bake. 
Cook the oysters as for a stew, only beating into them at 
the last two eggs, and thickening with a spoonful of fine 
cracker-crumbs or rice-flour. They should stew but five 
minutes, and time them so that the paste will be baked just 
in season to receive them. Lift the top crust, pour in the 
smoking hot oysters, and send up hot. 

I know that many consider it unnecessary to prepare the 
oysters and crust separately ; but my experience and obser- 
vation go to prove that, if this precavition be omitted, the 
oysters are apt to be wofully overdone. The reader can 
try both methods and take her choice. 

Pickled Oysters. *|« 

100 large oysters. 

1 pint white wine vinegar. 

1 doz. blades of mace. 

2 doz. whole cloves, 

2 doz. whole black peppers. 

1 large red pepper broken into bits. 

Put oysters, liquor and all, into a porcelain or bell-metal 
kettle. Salt to taste. Heat slowly until the oysters are 
very hot, but not to boiling. Take them out with a perfo- 
rated skimmer, and set aside to cool. To the liquor which 
remains in the kettle add the vinegar and spices. Boil up 
fairly, and when the oysters are almost cold, pour over them 
scalding hot. Cover the jar in which they are, and put 
away in a cool place. Next day put the pickled oysters into 
glass cans with tight tops. Keep in the dark, and where 
they are not liable to become heated, 

I have kept oysters thus prepared for three weeks in the 



78 COimON SENSE. 

winter. If yoti open a can, use tlie contents up as soon 
as practicable. The air, like tlie liglit, will turn them, 
dark. 

It is little trouble for every housekeeper to put up the 
pickled oysters needed in her family ; and besides the satis- 
faction she will feel in the consciousness that the materials 
used are harmless, and the oysters sound, she will save at 
least one-tliird of the price of those she would buy ready 
pickled. The colorless vinegar vised by " professionals " for 
such purposes is usually sulphuric or pyroligneous acid. If 
you doubt this, pour a little of the liquor from the pickled 
oysters put up by your obliging oyster-dealer into a bell- 
metal kettle. I tried it once, and the result was a liquid 
that matched the clear green of Niagara in hue. I cannot 
compare it justly with anything else. 

Roast Oysters. 

There is no pleasanter frolic for an Autumn evening, in 
the regions where oysters are plentiful, than an impromptu 
" roast " in the kitchen. There the oysters are hastily 
thrown into the fire by the peck. You may consider that 
your fastidicTus taste is marvellovisly respected if they are 
washed first. A bushel basket is set to receive the empty 
shells, and the click of the oyster-knives forms a constant 
accompaniment to the music of laughing voices. Nor are 
roast oysters amiss upon your own quiet supper-table, when 
the "good man" comes in on a wet night, tired and hungry, 
and wants " something heartening." Wash and wipe the 
shell-oysters, and lay them in the oven, if it is quick ; upon 
the top of the stove, if it is not. When they open, they 
are done. Pile in a large dish and send to table. Remove 
the upper shell by a dexterous wrench of the knife, season 
the oyster on the lower, with pepper-sauce and butter, or 
pepper, salt, and vinegar in lieu of the sauce, and you have 



8IIELL-FISH. 79 

the very aroma of this pearl of bivalves, pure and uiKle» 
filed. 

Or, you may open while raw, leaving the oysters upon 
the lower shells ; lay in a large baking-pan, and roast in thei. 
OAva Liquor, adding pepper, salt, and butter before serving. 

Raw Oysters. 

It has become quite fashionable to serve these as one of 
the preliminaries to a dinner-party ; sometimes in small 
plates, sometimes on the half-shell. They are seasoned hy 
each guest according to his 0A^^l taste. 

Steamed Oysters. 

If you have no steamer, improvise one by the help of a 
cullender and a pot-lid fitting closely into it, at a little 
distance from the top. Wash some shell oysters and lay 
them in such a position in the bottom of the cullender that 
the liquor ynW not escape from them when the shell opens, 
that is, with the upper shell down. Cover with a cloth 
throAVTi over the top of the cullender, and press the lid hard 
down upon this to exclude the air. Set over a pot of boil- 
ing water so deep that the cullender, which shoidd fit into 
the mouth, does not touch the water. Boil hard for twenty 
minutes, then make a hasty examination of the oysters. If 
they are oi)en, you are safe in removing the cover. Serve 
on the half-shell, or xipon a hot chafing-dish. Sprinkle a 
little salt over them and a few bits of butter ; but be quick 
in Avhatever you do, for the glory of the steamed oyster is to 
be eaten hot. 

Oyster Pat^s. >^ 

1 qt. oysters. 

2 tablespoonfuls of butter. 
Pepper, and a pinch of salt. 



80 COMMON SENSE. 

Set the oysters, witli enough liqnor to cover them, in a 
saucepan upon the range or stove; let them come to a boil; 
skim well, and stir in the biitter and seasoning. Two or 
three spoonfuls of cream will imjjrove them. Have ready 
small tins lined with pufF-paste. Put three or four oysters 
in each, accoi'ding to the size of the 2^ die y cover with paste 
and bake in a quick oven twenty minutes. For open 2'><J.tes, 
cut the paste into round cakes : those intended for the bot- 
tom crust less than half an inch thick ; for the upper, a lit- 
tle thicker. With a smaller cutter, remove a round of paste 
from the middle of the latter, leaving a neat ring. Lay 
this carefully upon the bottom crust ; place a second ring 
upon this, that the cavity may be deep enough to hold the 
oysters; lay the pieces you have extracted also in the 
j)an with the rest, and bake to a line brown in a quick oven. 
When done, wash over with beaten egg, around top and all, 
and set in the oven three minutes to glaze. Fill the cavity 
with a mixture prepared as below, fit on the top lightly, and 
serve. 

3Iixture. 

To half the liquor from a quart of oysters add an equal 
quantity of milk, and let it come to a boil. Put in all the 
oysters, leaving out the uncooked liquor ; heat to boiling, 
and stir in — 

1 tablespoonful butter. 

2 tablespoonfuls corn-starch, wet with a little milk. 
A little salt. 

Boil four minutes, stirring all the time until it thickens, 
and fill the cavity in the paste shells. These pd^f's are vei-y 
nice. 



8hell-f1sh. si 

Scallops. 

Tlie heart is the only part used. If you buy them iu 
the shell, boil and take out the hearts. Those sold in out 
markets are generally ready for frying or stewing. 

Dip them in beaten egg, then in cracker-crumbs, and 
fry in hot lard. 

Or, 

You may stew like oysters. The fried scallops are gen 
erally preferred. 

ScALLorED Clams. 

Chop the clams fine, and season with pepper and salt. 
Cayenne pepper is thought to give a finer flavor than black 
or white ; but to sOme palates it is insufferable. Mix in 
another dish some powdered cracker, moistened first with 
warm milk, then with the clam liqvTor, a beaten egg or two, 
and some melted bvitter. Stir in with this the chopped 
clams. Wash as many clam-shells as the mixture will fill ; 
wipe and butter them ; fill, heaping up and smoothing over 
with a silver knife or tea-spoon. Range in rows in your 
baking-pan, and cook until nicely browned. Or, if you do 
not care to be troubled with the shells, bake in patty-pans, 
sending to table hot in the tins, as you would the scallop- 
shells. 

Clam Fritters. »J« 

12 clams, minced fine. 
1 pint of milk. 
3 eggs. 

Add the liquor from the clams to the milk ; beat up the 
eggs and put to this, with salt and pepper, and flour enough 
for thin batter ; lastly, the chopped clams. Fry in hot lard, 
trying a little first to see that fa ; and batter are right. A 
tablespoonful will make a fritter of moderate si^e. Or, you 
4* 



82 COMMON SENSE. 

can dip the wliole claras in battex' and cook in like manner 
Fry quickly, or they are apt to be too greasy. 

Clam Chowder. 

Fry five or six slices of fat pork crisp, and chop tc 
pieces. Sprinkle some of these in the bottom of a pot ; 
lay upon them a stratum of clams ; sprinkle with caj'enne 
or black pe^^per and salt, and scatter bits of butter pi'ofuse- 
ly over all; next, have a layer of chopped onions, then one 
of small crackers, split and moistened with warm milk. On 
these pour a little of the fat left in the pan after the pork 
is fried, and then comes a new round of pork, clams, onion, 
etc. Proceed in this order until the pot is nearly full, 
when cover with water, and stew slowly — the pot closely 
covered — for three-quarters of an hour. Drain oft' all the 
liquor that will flow freely, and, wdien you have turned the 
chowder into the tureen, return the gravy to the pot. 
Thicken with flour, oi-, better still, pounded crackers ; add 
a glass of wine, some catsup, and spiced sauce ; boil up, 
and jiour over the contents of the tureen. Send around 
waln\it or butternut pickles wdth it. 



POULTRY. 



Poultry should never be eaten in less than six or eight 
hours after it is killed ; b\it it should be picked and drawn 
as soon as possible. There is no dii-er disgrace to our 
Northern markets than the practice of sending whole dead 
fowls to market. I have bought such from responsible 
]:>oultry-dealers, and found them uneatable, from having re- 
mained undrawn until the flavor of the craw and intestinest 
had impregnated the whole body. Those who are conver- 
sant with the habit of careful country housewives, of keep- 



POULTRY. 83 

iug up a fowl A\'iiliout food for a clay and iiiglit before kill- 
ing and dressing for tlieii- own eating, cannot but regard 
with disgust the surcharged crops and puify sides of those 
sold hy loeight in the shambles. If you want to know what 
you really pay for poultry bought in these circumstances, 
weigh the oftal extracted from the fowl by your cook, and 
deduct from the market weight. "But don't you know it 
actually poisons a fowl to lie so long undressed?" once ex- 
claimed a Southern lady to me._ " In our markets they are 
offered for sale ready picked and drawm, T\T.th the giblets — 
also cleaned — tucked under their wings." 

I know nothing about the poisonous nature of the en- 
trails and crops. I do assert that the custom is unclean 
and unjust. And this I do without the remotest hope of 
arousing my fellow-housekeepers to remonstrance against 
established usage. Only it relieves my mind somewhat to 
grumble at what I cannot help. The best remedy I can 
l)ro2>ose for the grievance is to buy live fowls, and, before' 
sending them home, ask your butcher to decapitate them ; 
the probabilities being greatly in favor of the supposition 
that youi- cook is too "tinder-hearted" to attempt the job. 

One word as to the manner of roasting meats and fowls. 
In this day of ranges and cooking-stoves, I think I am 
speaking within bounds when I assume that not one house- 
keeper in fifty uses a spit, or even a tin kitchen, for such 
purposes. It is in vain that the writers of receipt-books 
inform us with refreshing naivete that all our meats are 
baked, not roasted, and expatiate upon the superior flavor 
of those prepared upon the English sjjits and in old-fash- 
ioned kitchens, where enormous wood-fires blazed from 
morning until night. I shall not soon forget my perplex- 
ity when, an inexperienced housekeeper and a firm believer 
in all " that was wiit " by older and wiser people, I stood 
before my neat Mott's " Defiance," a fine sirloin of beef 



84 COMMON SENSE. 

ready to be cooked on the table beliind me, and read from 
my Instrnction-book that my " fii-e sboukl extend at least 
eight inches beyond the roaster on either side ! " I am not 
denying the virtues of spits and tin kitchens — only regret- 
tiaig that they are not within the reach of every o^^e. In 
view of this fact, let me remark, for the benefit of the un- 
fortunate many, that, in tlie opinion of excellent judges, the 
practice of roasting meat in close ovens has advantages. 
Of these I need mention but two, to wit, the preservation 
of the flavor of the article roasted, and the prevention of 
its escape to the upper regions of the dwelling. 

The directions hereafter given toviching roasting will 
apply either to turnspit, "kitchens," or ovens. 

PiOAST Turkey. 

After drawiiig the turkey, rinse out with several waters, 
and in next to the last mix a teaspoonful of soda. The in- 
side of a fowl, especially if 2:)urchased in the market, is 
sometimes very sour, and imparts an unpleasant taste to the 
stuffing, if not to the inner part of the legs and side-bones. 
The soda will act as a corrective, and is moreover very 
cleansing. Fill the body with this water, shake well, empty 
it out, and rinse with fair water. Then prepare a dressing 
of bread-crvimbs, mixed with butter, pepper, salt, thyme or 
sweet marjoram, and wet with hot water or milk. You 
may, if you like, add the beaten yolks of two eggs. A little 
chopped sausage is esteemed an improvement when well in- 
corporated with the other ingredients. Or, mince a dozen 
oysters and stir into the di'essing ; and, if you are partial to 
the taste, wet the bread-ci-vimbs with the oyster-liquor. 
The effect upon the tui'key-meat, particidarly that of the 
breast, is very pleasant. 

Stuff the craw with this, and tie a string tightly about 
the neck, to prevent the escape of the stuffing. Then fill 



POULTKY. 85 

the body of the turkey, and sew it tip "with strong thread, 
Tliis and the neck-string are to be removed when the fow] 
is dished. In roasting, if yovir fii-e is brisk, allow about ten 
minutes to a pound ; biit it will depend very much vipon 
the turkey's age whether this rule holds good. Dredge it 
with flour before roasting, and baste often ; at first with 
butter and water, afterward with the gravy in the dri2:)ping- 
pan. If you roast in an oven, and lay the turkey in the 
pan, put in with it a teacup of hot water. Many roast al- 
ways \ipon a grating placed on the top of the pan. In that 
case the boiling water steams the underj^art of the fowl, 
and prevents the skin from drying too fast, or cracking. 
Roast to a fine brown, and if it threaten to darken too 
rapidly, lay a sheet of white paper over it until the lower 
part is also done. 

Stew the chopped giblets in just enough water to cover 
them, and when tlie turkey is lifted from the pan, add 
these, with the water in which they were boiled, to the 
drippings ; thicken with a spoonful of browned flour, wet 
with cold water to prevent himping, boil up once, and pour 
into the gra;vy-boat. If the turkey is very fat, skim the 
drippings well before putting in the giblets. 

Serve with cranberry sauce. Some lay fried oysters in 
the dish around the turkey. 

Boiled Turkey. 

Chop about two dozen oysters, and mix with them a 
dressing compounded as for roast turkey, only with moie 
biitter, and Avet with the oyster-liquor and a like quantity 
of milk. Stuff the turkey as for roasting, craw and body, 
and baste about it a thin cloth, fitted closely to every part. 
The inside of the cloth should be dredged with flour to pi-e- 
vent the fowl from sticking to it. Allow fifteen minutes to 
a pound, and boil slowly. 



86 COMMON SENSE. 

Serve witli oyster-sauce, made by adding to a cupful of. 
the liquor in whicli the turkey was boiled, the same quan- 
tity of milk and eight oysters chopped fine. Season with 
minced parsley, stir in a spoonful of rice or wheat flour, wet 
with cold milk, a tablespoonful of bixtter. Boil up once and 
pour into an oyster-tureen. Send around celery with it. 

Turkey Scallop. »^ 

Cut the meat from the bones of a cold boiled or roasted 
turkey left from yesterday's dinner. Remove the bits of 
skin and gristle, and chop up the rest very fine. Put in 
the bottom of a biittered dish a layer of cracker or bread- 
crumbs ; moisten slightly with milk, that they may not ab- 
sorb all the gravy to be poured in afterward ; then spread a 
layer of the minced turkey, with bits of the stuffing, pep- 
per, salt, and small pieces of butter. Another layer of 
cracker, wet with milk, and so on until the dish is nearly 
full. Before putting on the topmost layer, poi;r in the 
gravy left from the turkey, diluted — should there not be 
enough — with hot water, and seasoned with Worcester- 
shire sauce, catsup, and butter. Have ready a crust of 
cracker-crumbs soaked in warm milk, seasoned with salt, 
and beaten up light with two eggs. It should be just thick 
enough to spread smoothly over the top of the scallop. 
Stick bits of butter plentifully, upon it, and bake. Turn a 
deep plate over the dish until the contents begin to bub- 
ble at the sides, showing that the whole is thoroughly 
cooked ; then remove the cover, and brown, A large pud- 
ding-dish full of the mixture will be cooked in three-quar- 
ters of an hour. 

This, like many other economical dishes, will prove so 
savory as to claim a frequent appearance upon any table. 

Cold chicken may be prepared in the same way ; 



rOL'LTKY. 81 

Or, 

The minced tiirkey, dressing, and crackev-crvimbs may 
be wet with gi'avy, two eggs beaten into it, and the force- 
meat thus made rolled into oblong shapes, dipped in egg 
and pounded cracker, and fried like croquettes, for a side 
dish, to " make out " a dinner of ham or cold meat. 

Ragout of Turkey. 

This is also a cheap, yet nice dish. Cut the cold 
turkey from the bones and into bits an inch long with knife 
and fork, tearing as little as possible. Put into a skillet or 
saucepan the gravy left from the roast, with hot water to 
dilute it should the quantity be small. Add a lump of 
butter the size of an egg, a teaspoonful of pungent sauce, 
a half-teaspoonful of cloves, a large pinch of nutmeg, with 
a little salt. Let it boil, and ])\\t in the meat. Stevv' very 
slowly for ten minutes — not more — and stir in a table- 
spoonful of cranberry or currant jelly, another of browned 
flour which has been wet with cold water ; lastly, a glass 
of brown sherry or Madeira. Boil up once, and serve in a 
covered dish for breakfast. Leave out the stuffing entire- 
ly ; it is no improvement to the flavor, and disfigures the 
appearance of the ragout. 

Roast ■ Chickens. 

Having picked and drawn them, wash out well in two 
or three waters, addmg a little soda to the last but one 
should any doubtful odor linger about the cavity. Prepare 
a stufling of bread-crumbs, butter, pepper, salt, &c. Fill 
the bodies and crops of the chickens, which should be 
young and plump ; sew them \ip, and roast an hour or more, 
in proportion to their size. Baste two or three times with 
biitter and water, afterward with their own gravy. If 



88 COMMON SENSE. 

laid flat within th.e dripping-jian, put in at the first a little 
hot water to prevent burning. 

Stew the giblets and necks in enough water to cover 
them, and, Avhen you have removed the fowls to a hot dish, 
pour this into the drippings ; boil up once ; add the gib- 
lets, chopped fine ; thicken with browned flour ; boil again, 
and send to table in a gravy-boat. 

Serve with crab-apple jelly or tomato sauce. 

Boiled Chickens. 

Clean, wash, and stuS" as for roasting. Baste a floured 
cloth around each, and put into a pot with enough boiling 
water to cover them well. The hot water cooks the skia at 
once, and prevents the escape of the juices. The broth 
will not be so rich as if the fowls are put on in cold water ; 
but this is a proof that the meat will be more nutritioiis 
and better flavored. Stew very slowly, for the first half- 
hour especially. Boil an hour or more, guiding yourself 
by size and toughness. 

Serve with egg or bread sauce, (See Sauces.) 

Pricasseed Chicken. {White.) *^ 

Clean, wash, and cut up the fowls, which need not be so 
tender as for roasting. Lay them in salt and water for 
half an hour. Put them in a pot with enough cold water 
to cover them, and half a jiound of salt pork cut into thin 
strips. Cover closely, and let them heat very slowly ; then 
stew for over an hour, if the fowls are tender. I have 
used chickens for this purpose that required four hours' 
etewing, but they were tender and good when done. Only 
put them on in season, and cook very slowly. If they boil 
fast, they toughen and shrink into uneatableness. AVhen 
tender, add a chopped onion or two, parsley, and pepper. 



POULTKY. by 

Cover closely again, and, when it has heated to boiling, stii 
in a teacupful of milk, to which have been added two beaten 
eggs and two tablesjioonfuls of fioiir. Boil np fairly ; add a 
great spoonful of butter. Arrange the chicken neatly in a 
deep chafing-dish, jjour the gravy over it, and serve. 

In this, as in all cases where beaten egg is added to hot 
liquor, it is best to dip out a few spoonfuls of the latter, 
and drop a little at a time into the egg, beating all the 
while, that it may heat evenly and gradually before it is 
put into the scalding contents of the saucepan or pot. 
Eggs managed iu tliis way will not curdle, as they are apt 
to do if thrown sviddenly into hot liquid. 

Fricasseed Chicken. [Brown.) *J< 

Clean, wash, cut \ip, and skin a pair of young chickens. 
Lay in clear water for half an hour. If they are old, yovx 
cannot brown them well. Put them in a saucejDan, with 
enough cold water to cover them well, and set over the fire 
to heat slowly. Meanwhile, ctit half a pound of salt pork 
into strips, and fry crisp. Take them out, chop fine, and 
put into the pot with the chicken. Fry in the fat left in 
the frying-pan one large onion, or two or three small ones, 
cut into slices. Let them brown well, and add them also 
to the chicken, with a teaspoonful of allspice and one of 
cloves. Stew all together slowly for an hour or more, nntil 
the meat is very tender ; you can test this with a fork. 
Take out the pieces of fowl and put in a hot dish, covering 
closely imtil the gravy is ready. Add to this a great spoon- 
ful of walnut or other dark catsup, and nearly three table- 
spoonfuls of browned flour, a little chopped parsley, and a 
glass of brown sheiTy. Boil up once ; strain through a 
cullender, to remove the bits of pork and onion ; retiirn to 
the pot, with the chicken ; let it come to a final boil, and 
serve, pouring the gravy over the pieces of fowl. 



so COMMON SENSE. 

Bkoiled Chicken. 

It is possible to render a tough fowl eatable by boiling 
or stewing it witli care. Never broil sucli ! And even 
when assured that your "broiler" is yovmg, it is wise to 
make this doubly siu-e by laying it upon sticks extending 
from side to side of a dripping-pan full of boiling water. 
Set this in the oven, invert a tin pan over the chicken, and 
let it steam for half an hour. This process relaxes the 
muscles, and renders supple tlie joints, besides preserving 
the juices that would be lost in parboiling. The chicken 
should be split down the back, and wiped perfectly dry 
before it is steamed. Transfer from the vapor-bath to a 
buttered gridiron, inside doM'xiward. Cover with a tin pan 
or common plate, and broil until tender and brown, turning 
sevei'al times ; from half to three-quai-ters of an hour will 
be sufficient. Piit into a hot chafing-dish, and butter very 
well. Send to table smoking hot. 

Feied Chicken {JSfo. 1). 

Clean, wash, and cut to pieces a coviple of Spring chick- 
ens. Have ready in a frying-pan enough boiling lard or 
dripping to cover them well. Dip each piece in beaten egg 
when you have salted it, then in cracker-crumbs, and fry 
until brown. If the chicken is large, steam it before fry- 
ing, as directed in the foregoing receipt. When you have 
taken out the meat, throw into the hot fat a dozen sprigs 
of parsley, and let them remain a minute — just long enough 
to crisp, but not to dry them. Garnish the chicken by 
strewing these over it. 

Fried Chicken {No. 2). 

Cut up half a pound of fat salt pork in a frying-pan, 
and fry vuitil the gi'ease is extracted, but not until it 



POULTRY. II I 

browns. Wash and cut np a young chicken (broiling size) ; 
soak in salt and water for half an hour ; wipe dry, season 
with pepper, and dredge with floui' ; then fry in the hot 
fat until each piece is a rich brown on both sides. Take 
lip, drain, and set aside in a hot covered dish. Pour into 
the gravy left in the frying-pan a cup of milk — half cream 
is better ; thicken with a S2:>oonful of flour and a talle- 
spoonful of butter ; add some chopped parsley, boil up, 
and pour over the hot chicken. This is a standard dish in 
the Old Dominion, and tastes nowhere else as it does when 
eaten on Yirginia soil. The cream-gravy is often omitted, 
and the chicken served up dry, with bunches of fried pars- 
ley dropped ujjon it. 

Chickex Pot-pie. 

Line the bottom and sides of a pot with a good rich 
paste, reserving enough for a top crust and for the square 
bits to be scattered through the pie. Butter the pot very 
lavishly, or your pastiy will stick to it and burn. Cvit up 
a fine large fowl, and half a poimd of ham or salt pork. 
Put in a layer of the latter, pepper it, and cover with 
pieces of the chicken, and this with the paste dumplings 
or squares. If you use potatoes, parboil them before put- 
ting them into the pie, as the first water in which they are 
boiled is rank and unwholesome. The potatoes should be 
sliced and laid next the pastry squares ; then another layer 
of pork, and so on until your chicken is used up. Cover 
with pastry rolled out quite thick, and slit this in the mid- 
dle. H'-at very slowly, and boil two hours. Turn into a 
large dish, the lower crust on top, and the gravy about it. 

This is the old-fashioned pot-pie, dear to the memoi'y 
of men who were school-boys thiity and forty years ago. 
If you are not experienced in such manufactures, you had 
better omit the lower crust ; and, having browned the 



92 COMMON SENSE. 

upper, by putting a hot pot-lid or stove-cover on top of 
the pot for some minutes, remove dexterously Avithout 
breaking. Pour o\it the chicken into a dish, and set the 
crust above it. 

Yeal, beef-steak, lamb (not mutton), hares, (fee, may bt 
substituted for the chicken. The pork will salt it suffi- 
ciently. 

Baked Chicken Pie »{« 

Is made as above, but baked in a biittered pudding-dish, 
and, in place of the potatoes, three hard-boiled eggs are 
chopped up and strewed among the pieces of chicken. If 
the chickens are tough, or even doubtful, parboil them be- 
fore making the pie, adding the water in which /hey were 
boiled, instead of cold water, for gi'avy. If they are lean, 
put in a few bits of butter. Ornament with leaves cut out 
with a cake-cutter, and a star in the centre. Bake an hour 
— more, if the pie is large. 

Chicken Pudding »J« 

Cut up as for fricassee, and pai'boil, seasoning well with 
pepper, salt, and a lump of butter the size of an egg, to 
each chicken. The fowls should be young and tender, and 
divided at every joint. Stew slowly for half an hour, take 
them out, and lay on a flat dish to cool. Set aside the 
water in which they were stewed for your gravy. 

Make a batter of one quart of milk, thi-ee cups of flour, 
three tablespoonfuls melted butter, half a teaspoonful soda, 
and one spoonful of cream tartar, with four eggs well beaten, 
and a little salt. Put a layer of chicken in the bottom of 
the dish, and pour about half a cupfvU of batter over it — 
enough to conceal the meat ; then, another layer of chicken, 
and more batter, until the dish is full. The batter must 
form the crust. Bake one hour, in a moderate oven, if tha 
dish is large. 



POULTEY. 03 

Beat \[\\ an egg, and stii- into the gravy which was set 
aside ; thicken with two teaspoonfuls of rice or wheat flour, 
add a little chopped parsley ; boil up, and send it to table 
in a gravy-boat. 

Chicken and Ham. i^ 

Draw, wash, and stuff a pair of young fowls. Cut 
enough large, thick slices of cold boiled ham to envelop 
these entirely, wrapping them up carefully, and winding a 
string about all, to prevent the ham from falling off". Put 
into your dripping-pan, with a little water to prevent 
scorching ; dashing it over the meat lest it should dry and 
shrink. Invert a tin pan over all, and bake slowly for one 
hour and a quarter, if the fowls are small and tender — 
longer, if tough. Lift the cover from time to time to baste 
with the drij>pings — the more frequently as time wears on. 
Test the tenderness of the fowls, by sticking a fork through 
the ham into the breast. When done, undo the strings, 
lay the fowls in a hot dish, and the slices of ham about 
them. Stir into the drip])ing a little chopped parsley, a 
tablespoonful of browned flour wet in cold water ; pepi^er, 
and let boil up once. Pour some of it over the chickens — 
not enoiigh to float the ham in the dish ; serve the rest in 
a gravy-boat. 

Roast Ducks. 

Clean, wash, and wipe the ducks very carefully. To the 
usual dressing add a litth sage (powdered or gi-een), and 
a minced shallot. Stuff, an'l sev/ up as usual, i-eserving the 
giblets for the gravy. If they are tender, they will not re- 
quire moi*e than an hour to roast. Baste well. Skim the 
gravy before putting in the giblets and thickening. The 
giblets should be stewed in a very little water, then cliopped 
fi^ne, and added to the gravy in the di'ipping-pan, with a 
chopped shallot and a spoonful of bi-owned flour. 

Accompany with cun-ant or grape jelly. 



94 COMMON SENSE. 

To Use up Cold Duck. *J« 

I may say, as preface, that cold duck is in itself an ex- 
cellent supper-disli, or side-dish, at a family dinner, and is 
often preferred to hot. If the duck has been cut into at all, 
divide neatly into joints, and slice the breast, laying slices 
of dressing about it. Garnish with lettuce or parsley, and 
eat with j ell}^. 

But if a warm dish is desired, cut the meat fi'om the 
bones aiid lay it in a saucepan, with a little minced cold 
ham; pour on just enough water to cover it, and stir in a 
tablespoonful of butter. Cover, and heat gi'adually, iintil 
it is near boiling. Then add the gravy, diluted with a little 
hot water ; a great spoonful of catsup, one of Worcester- 
shire sauce, and one of currant or cranben-y jelly, with a 
glass of wine and a tablespoonful of browned flour. 

Or, 
You may put the gi-avy, with a little hot water and a lump 
of butter, in a frying-pan, and when it is hot lay in the 
pieces of duck, and warm up quickly, stii'ring in at the 
last a teaspoonful of Worcestershire sauce and a table- 
spoonful of jelly. 

Serve in a hot chafing-dish. 

(For wild ducks, see Game.) 

Stewed Duck. 

This is a good way to treat an old and tough fowl. 

Clean and divide, as you would a chicken for fricassee. 
Put into a saucepan, with several (minced) slices of cold 
ham or salt pork which is not too fat, and stew slowly for 
at least an ho\ir — keeping the lid on all the while. Then 
stir in a lai'ge chopped onion, a half-spoonful of powdered 
sage, or a whole spoonful of the green leaves cut fine, half 



POULTET. 95 

as much parsley, a tablespoonful catsup, and black pepper. 
Stew another half-hour, or until the duck is tender, and 
add a teaspoonful brown sugar, and a tablespoonful of 
browned flour, previously wet Avith cold water. Boil up 
once, and serve in a deep covered dish, with green peas as 
an accompaniment. 

Guinea Fowls. 

Many are not aware what an excellent article of food 
these speckled Arabs of the poultry-yard are. They are 
kept chiefly. for the beauty of their plumage, and their deli- 
cious eggs, which are far richer than those of chickens. 

Unless young they are apt to be tough, and the dark 
color of the meat is objected to by those who are not fond 
of, or used to eating game. Cooked according to the fore- 
going receipt they are very savory, no matter how old they 
may be. Put them on eai-ly, and stew sloioly, and good 
management will bring the desired end to pass. There is 
nothing in the shape of game or poultry that is not ame- 
nable to this process, providing the salt be omitted vmtil the 
meat is tender. 

But a pair of young Guinea fowls, stuffed and roasted, 
basting them with butter until they are half done, deserve 
an honorable place upon our bill of fare. Season tlie gravy 
with a chopped shallot, parsley, or summer savory, not 
omitting the minced giblets, and thicken with browned 
flour. Send around currant, or other tart jelly, with tha 
fowl. A little ham, minced fine, improves the dressing. 

Boast Goose. 

Clean and wash the goose — not forgetting to put a spoon- 
full of soda in next to the last water, rinse out well, and 
wipe the inside quite diy. Add to the usual stuffing of 
l»read-ci-umbs, pepper, salt, etc, a tablespoonful melted l)\it- 



96 COMMON SE>^BE. 

ter, a large-sized onion chopped fine, a tablespojnfid chop- 
ped sage, the yolks of two eggs, and some minute bits of fat 
porii. Stuff body and craw, and sew up. It will take fully 
two hours to roast, if the fire is strong. Cover the breast 
until it is half done with white paper, or a paste of flour and 
water, removing this when you are ready to brown. 

Make a gravy as for roast duck, adding a glass of sherry 
or Madeira, or (if yoii can get it) old Port. 

Send to table with cranberry or apple sauce. 

Goose Pie. 

An old goose is as nearly good for nothing as it is possi- 
ble for anything which was once valuable, and is not now 
absolutely spoiled, to be. The best use to put it to is to 
make it into a pie, in the following manner. Put on the 
ancient early in the morning, in cold water enough to cover 
it, unsalted, having cut it to'pieces at every joint. Warm it 
up gradually, and let it stew — not boil hard — for four or five 
hours. Should the water need replenishing, let it be done 
from the boiling kettle. Parboil a beef's tongue (smoked), 
cut into slices nearly half an inch thick ; also slice six hard- 
boiled eggs. Line a deep pi^dding-dish with a good paste ; 
lay in the pieces of goose, the giblets chopped, the sliced 
tongue and egg, in consecutive layei's ; season with pejjper, 
salt, and bits of butter, and proceed in tliis order until the 
dish is full. If the goose is large, cut the meat from the 
bones after stewing, and leave out the latter entirely. In- 
tersperse with strips of paste, and fill up Avith the gi'avy in 
which the goose was stewed, thickened with flour. Cover 
with a thick paste, and when it is done, brush over the top 
with beaten white of egg. 

In cold weather this pie will keep a week, and is very 
good. 



POULTKY. 97 

Roast Tigeons. 

Clean, ■wash, and stuff as you would chickens. Lay them 
ill rows, if roasted in the oven, with a little water in the 
pan to prevent scorching. Unless they are very fat, baste 
wit] I butter until they are half done, afterwards with their 
own gravy. Thicken the gravy that drips from them, and 
boil up onc(3 ; then pour into a gravy-boat. The pigeons 
should lie close together on the dish. 

Stewed Pigeons. 

Pick, draw, clean and stuff as above directed. Put the 
pigeons in a deep pot with enough cold water to cover them, 
and stew gently for an hour, or until, testing them with a 
fork, you find them tender. Then season with pepper, salt, 
a few blades of mace, a little sv/eet marjoram, and a good 
piece of butter. Stew, or rather simmer, for five minutes 
longer^ — then stir in a tablespoonful of browned Hour. Let 
it boil up once ; remove the pigeons, draw out the strings 
with which they were sewed up, and serve, pouring the hot 
gravy over them. A little salt pork or ham, cut into strips, 
is an improvement. This should be put in when the pigeons 
have stewed half an hour. 

Broiled Pigeons or Squabs. 

Young pigeons or " sqiiabs '■' are rightly esteemed a great 
delicacy. They are cleaned, washed, and dried carefully with 
a clean cloth ; then split down the back, and broiled like 
chickens. Season with pepper and salt, and butter liberally 
in dishing them. They are in great request in a convales- 
cent's room, being peculiarly savory and nourishing. 

They may, for a change, be roasted whole, according to 
the receipt for roast pigeons. 
5 



93 co]vemon sense. 

Pigeon Pie 
Is best made of wild pigeons. (See Game.) 



MEATS. 
Roast Beef. 



The best pieces for roasting are tlie sirloin and rib pieces. 
The latter are oftenest used by small families. Make your 
butcher remove most of the bone, and skewer the meat into 
the shape of a round. If you roast in an oven, it is a good 
plan to dash a small cup of boiling water over the meat in 
first putting it down, letting it trickle into the pan. This, 
for a season, checks the escape of the juices, and allows the 
meat to get warmed through before the toj) dries by said 
ascape. If there is much fat upon the upper surface, cover 
Avith a paste of flour and water until it is nearly done. 
Baste frequently, at first with salt and water, afterward with 
the drippings. Allow about a quarter of an hour to a 
pound, if you like your meat rai-e ; more, if you jjrefer to 
have it well done. Some, when the meat is almost done, 
dredge with flour and baste with butter — only once. 

Remove the beef, when quite ready, to a heated dish ; 
skim the drippings ; add a teacupful of boiling water, boil 
up once, and send to table in a gravy-boat. Many reject 
made gravy altogether, and only serve the red liquor that 
runs from the meat into the dish as it is cut. This is the 
practice with some — indeed most of our best housekeepers. 
If you have made gravy in a sauce-boat, give your guest hia 
choice between that and the juice in the dish. 

Serve with mustard, or scraped horse-radish and vinegar 



BEEF. 99 

Roast Beep, with Yorkshire Puddixg. J^ 

Set a piece of beef to roast upon a grating, or several 
sticks laid aci'oss a dripping-pan. Three-quarters of an 
hour before it is done, mix the pudding and povu- into the 
pan. Continue to roast the beef, the dripjiing meanwhile 
falling upon the latter below. When both are done, cut the 
pudding into squares, and lay around the meat when dished. 
If there is much fat in the dripping-pan before the j^udding 
is ready to be put in, drain it off, leaving just enough to 
prevent the batter from sticking to the bottom. 

Meceiptfor Pudding. 

1 jiint of milk. 

4 eggs, whites and y •jlks beaten separately. 

2 cups of flour. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 
Be careful, in mixing, not to get the batter too stiff. 
This pudding, which the cook who introduced it into my 
family persisted in calling '■'■Auction pudding," is very 
palatable and popular, and not so rich as would be thought 
from the manner of baking. It should be a yellow-brown 
when done. 

Beef-Steak. 

It is not customary to fry beef-steaks for people who 
know what really good cookery is. To speak more plainly, 
a steak, killed by heat and swimming in grease, is a culinary 
solecism, both vulgar and indigestible. 

Cut the steak thick, at least three-quarters of an inch in 
thickness, and if you cannot get tender meat for this pui'- 
pose, it is best to substitute some other dish for it. But 
since tender meat is not always to be had, if the piece you 
have purchased is doubtful, lay it on a clean cloth, take a 
blunt heavy carving-knife, if you have not a steak mallet, 



100 commo:n' sense. 

aud Lack closely f»-om one end to the otliei' ; then turn and 
rejoeat tlie process iipon the other side. The knife sliould 
be so dull you cannot cut with it, and the strokes not the 
sixtieth j^art of an inch apart. Wipe, but not wash, and 
lay on a buttered gridiron over a clear fire, turning very 
often as it begins to drip. Do not season until it is done, 
which will be in about twelve minutes, if the fire is good 
and the cook attentive. Rub your hot chafing-dish with a 
split raw onion, lay in the steak, salt and pepper on both 
sides, and put a liberal lump of butter upon the vipper. 
Then put on a hot cover, and let it stand five minutes to 
draw the juices to the surface before it is eaten. If you 
have neither chafing-dish nor cover, lay the steak between 
two hot platters for the same time, sending to table without 
uncovei-ing. A gridiron fitting under the grate is better 
than any other. If a gi-idiron is not at hand, rub a little 
butter upon the bottom of a hot, clean frying-pan, put in 
the meat, set over a bright fire, and turn frequently. This 
will not be equal to steak cooked upon a gridiron, but it is 
infinitely preferable to the same fried. 

I shall never forget the wondering distrust with which 
my first cook, a sable " professional," watched me Avhen I 
undertook to show her how to prepare a steak for the third 
breakfast over which I presided as mistress of ceremonies. 
And when, at the end of twelve minutes, I removed the 
meat, " rare and hot," to the heated dish in readiness, her 
sniff" of lofty contemj^t was eloquent as indescribable. 

" Call dat cooked ! Folks 'bout here would 'a had dat 
steak on by day -break !" 

A remark that has been recalled to my mind hundreds 
of times since at the tables of so-called ca2?ital housewives. 

The best — nay, the only pieces for steak are those known 
as porter-house and sirloin. The former is the more highly 
esteemed by gourmands ; but a really tender sirloin is more 



BEEF. 101 

serviceable where there are several persons in the family, 
the porter-house having a narrow sti'ip of extremely nice 
meat lying next the bone, while the rest is often inferior to 
any part of the sirloin. 

Beef-steak and Onions. 

Prepare the steak as above directed. While it is broiling 
put three or four chopped onions in a frying-pan with a lit- 
tle beef-dripping or butter. Stir and shake them briskly 
until they ai-e done, and begin to broA\ai. Dish your steak 
and lay the onions thickly on top. Cover and let all stand 
five or six minutes, that the hot onions may impart the re- 
quired flavor to the hot meat. In helping your guests, in- 
quire if tliey will take onions with the slices of steak jjut 
upon their plates. I need hardly remind the sensible cook 
how necessary it is to withdraw the gridiron from the fire 
for an instant, should the fat drip upon the coals below, and 
smoke or blaze. Yet those who have eaten steaks flavored 
with creosote may thank me for the suggestion. 

Beef a-la-mode. ►J* 

Take a rotmd of beef; remove the bone from the middle, 
and ti'im away the tougher bits about the edges, with such 
gi'istle, ifec, as you can reach. Set these aside for soup- 
stock. 

Bind the beef into a symmetrical shape by passing a 
strip of stout muslin, as wide as the round is high, about it, 
and stitching the ends together at one side. Have ready at 
least a pound of fat salt pork, cut into strips as thick as 
yo\ir middle finger, and long enougJi to reach from top to 
bottom of tne trussed round. Put a half pint of vinegar 
over the fire in a tin or porcelain saucepan ; season with 
three or four minced shallots or button onions, two tea- 
spoonfuls made mustard, a teaspoonful nutmeg, one of 



102 COMMON SENSE. 

cloves, half as much allspice, half- sjioonful black pei)per ; 
with a bunch of sweet herbs minced fine, and a tablespoon- 
ful brown sugar. Let all simmer for five minutes, then boil 
lip once, and pour, while scalding hot, upon the stri2:)S oi 
pork, which should be laid in a deep dish. Let all stand to- 
gether until cold. Remove the pork to a plate, and mix with 
the liquor left in the dish enough bread-crumbs to make 
a tolerably stiff force-meat. If the vinegar is very strong, 
dilute with a little water before moistening the crumbs. 
With a long, thin-bladed knife, make perpendicular incisions 
in the meat, not more than half an inch apart, even nearer 
is better; thrust into these the strips of fat poi-k, so far 
down that the ujiper ends are just level with the surface, 
and work into the cavities with them a little of the force- 
meat. Proceed thiis until the meat is faii-ly riddled and 
plugged with the pork. Fill the hole from which the bone 
was taken with the dressing and bits of pork ; rub the up- 
per side of the beef well with the spiced force-meat. Put 
into a baking-pan, with a little water to jirevent burning ; 
turn a large pan over it to keep in the steam, and roast 
slowly for five or six hours, allowing half an hour to each 
pound of meat. If the beef be tough, you had better stew 
the round by putting it in a jiot with half enough Avater to 
cover it. Cover tightly and stew very slowly for six hours ; 
then set in the oven with the gravy about it, and brown 
half an hour, basting frequently. 

If you roast the round, do not remove the cover, except 
to baste (and this should be done often), until fifteen min- 
utes before you draw it from the oven. Set away with the 
muslin band still about it, and pour the gravy over the meat. 

When cold, lift from the gravy, — which, by the way, 
will be excellent seasoning for your soup-stock, — cut the 
stitches in the muslin girdle, and remove carefully and 
send the meat to table, cold, garnished with parsley and 



BEEF. 103 

nasturtium blossoms. Carve horizontally, in slices thin aa 
a shaving. Do not offer the outside to any one ; but tha 
second cut will be handsomely marbled with the whit^i 
pork, which appearance should continue all the way down. 
I cannot too highly commend this as a side-dish at din 
ner, and a supper and breakfast stand-by. In winter it 
will keep a week and more, and as long in summer, if kept 
in the refrigerator — except when it is on the table. 

Breakfast Stew of Beef. ^ 

Cut up two pounds of beef — not too lean — into pieces 
an inch long; put them into a saucepan with just enough 
water to cover them, and stew gently for two hours. Set 
away until next morning, when season with pepper, salt, 
sweet marjoram or summer savory, chopped onion, and 
parsley. Stew half an hour longer, and add a teaspoon- 
ful of sauce or catsup, and a tablespoouful of bi'owned 
flour wet up -svith cold water ; finally, if you wish to have 
it very good, half a glass of wine. Boil up once, and 2)our 
into a covered deep dish, 

Tliis is an economical dish, for it can be made of the 
commoner parts of the beef, and exceedingly nice for Avinter 
breakfasts. Eaten with corn-bread and stewed potatoes, it 
will soon win its way to a 2)lace in the " stock company " 
of every judicious housewife 

Another Breakfast Dish. 

Cut thin slices of cold roast beef, and lay them in a tin 
saucepan set in a pot of boiling water. Cover them with 
a gravy made of three tablespoonfuls of melted butter, 
one of walnut catsuj), a teaspoonful of vinegar, a little salt 
and pepper, a spoonful of cui'rant jelly, a teaspoonful mado 
uiustard, and some warm water. Cover tiglitly, and steam 



104 COMMON SENSE. 

for hklf an hour, keeping the water in the outer vesajl on 
a hard boil. 

If the meat is uncler-clone, this is particularly nice. 

Beef Hash. 

To two parts cold roast or boiled corned beef, chopped 
fine, put one of mashed potatoes, a little pepper, salt, milk, 
and melted butter. Turn all into a frying-pan, and stir un- 
til it is heated through and smoking hot, but not until it 
browns. Put into a deep dish, and if stiff enough, shape 
as you wovdd mashed potato, into a hillock. 

Or, you can cease stirring for a few min\ites, and let 
a brown crust form on the xmder side; then turn out 
whole into a flat dish, the bi'own side uppermost. 

Or, mould the mixture into flat cakes; dip these in 
beaten eggs and fry in hot drippings. 

The remains of beef a-la-mode are very good prepared 
in any of these ways. A little catsup and mustard are an 
improvement to plain cold beef, thus hashed. 

Beef-steak Pie. 

Cut the steak into pieces an inch long, and stew with 
the bone (cracked) in just enough water to cover the meat 
until it is half done. At the same time parboil a dozen 
jjotatoes in another pot. If you ^vish a bottom crust — a 
doubtful question — line a pudding-dish with a good paste, 
made according to the receipt given below. Put in a layer 
of the beef, with salt and pepper, and a very little chopped 
onion; then one of sliced potatoes, with a little butter 
scattered upon them, and so on, \intil the dish is full. 
Pour over all the gravy in which the meat is stewed, leav- 
ing first thrown away the bone and thickened with browned 
Hour. Cover with a crust thicker than the lower, leaving 
a slit in the middle. 



BEEF 105 

Crust for Meat-Pies. »{« 

1 quart of flour. 

3 tablespoonfuls of lard. 

2|- cups milk. 

1 teaspoonful of soda wet witli hot water, and 
stirred into the milk. 

2 teaspoonfids of cream-tartar sifted into the dry 
flour. 

1 teaspoonful of salt. 

Work up very lightly and qiiickly, and do not get 
too stiff. 

Beef-Pie, with Potato Crust. ^J* 

Mince some rare I'oast beef or cold coi'ued beef, if il ia 
not too salt ; season with pepper and salt, and spread a 
layer in the bottom of a pudding-dish. Over this put one 
of mashed potato, and stick bits of butter thickly all over 
it ; then another of meat, and so on until you are ready 
for the crust. 

To a large cupful of mashed potato add two tablespoon- 
fuls of melted butter, a well-beaten egg, two cups of milk, 
and beat all together until very light. Then work in 
enough flour to enable you to roll out in a sheet — not too 
stiflF — and, when you have added to tlie meat and potato in 
the dish a gra\'y made of warm water, buttei', milk, and 
catsup, with what cold gravy or dripping remains fiom the 
" roast," cover the pie with a thick, tender crust, cutting a 
slit in the middle. 

You can use the potato cinst, which is very wholesome 
and good, for any kind of meat-pie. It looks well brushed 



106 common sense. 

Beef's Heart. 

Wash the heart well, and cut into squares half an inch 
long. Stew them for ten minutes in enough water to cover 
them. Salt the water slightly to draw out the blood, and 
throw it away as it rises in scum to the top. Take out the 
meat, strain the liquor, and return the chopped heart to it, 
with a sliced onion, a great spoonful of catsup, some jiars- 
ley, a head of celeiy chopped fine, and cayenne pepper, 
with a large lump of butter. Stew until the meat is very 
tender, when add a tablespoonful of browned floui* to 
thicken. Boil up once, and serve. 

To Corn Beef. 

Rub each piece of beef well with salt mixed with one- 
tenth part of saltpetre, until the salt lies diy upon the sur- 
face. Put aside in a cold place for twenty-four hours, and 
repeat the process, rubbing in the mixture very thoroughly. 
Put away again untd the next day, by which time the 
pickle should be ready. 

5 gallons of water. 

1 gallon of salt. 

4 ounces saltpetre. 

1^ lb. brown sugar. 

Boil fhis brine ten minutes ; let it get perfectly cold ; then 
pour over the beef, having wiped the latter entii-ely dry. 

Examine the pickle from time to time to see if it keeps 
well ; if not, take out the meat without delay, wipe it, and 
rub in dry salt, covering it well until you can prepare new 
and stronger brine. 

Boiled Corned Beef. 

If your piece is a round, skewer it well into shape, and 
tie it ap with stout tape or twine when you have washed i< 



BEEP. 107 

In three or four waters and removed all the salt from the 
outside. Put into a pot, and cover with cold water. Al- 
low, in boiling, about twenty minutes to a pound. Turn 
the meat three times while cooking. 

When done, drain very dry, and serve with drawn but- 
ter in a sauce-boat. Send around mashed turnips with the 
meat. They shoukl be boiled in a separate pot, liowever, 
or they will imjjart a disagreeable taste to tlie beef. 

The brisket is a good piece for a family dinner. 

Beef Tongue. 

Soak over night in cold water when you have washed 
it well. Next morning put into a pot with plenty of cold 
water, and boil slowly until it is tender throughout. This 
you can determine by testing it with a foik. 

When it is cold, pare off the thick skin, cut in round 
slices, and dish for tea, garnishing with fresh parsley. 

Tongue sandwiches are generally held in higher esteem 
than those made of ham. 

Dried Beef. 

The most common way of serving dried or smoked 
beef is to shave it into thin slices or chips, raw ; but a 
more savory relish may be made of it with little trouble. 

Put the sUces of uncooked beef into a frying-jian with 
just enough boiling water to cover them ; set them over 
the fire for ten minutes, drain off all the water, and with a 
knife and fork cut the meat into small bits. Keturn to 
the pan, which should be hot, with a tablespoonful of but- 
ter and a little pejiper. Have ready some well-beaten eggs, 
allowing four to a half-pound of beef; stir them into the 
pan with the minced meat, and toss and stii- the mixtur-o 
for about two minutes. Send to table in a covered dish. 



108 COMMON SENSE. 

MUTTON AND LAMB. 

Roast Mutton. 

The pai-ts Avhich are usually roasted are : — 

The shoulder, 

The saddle, or chine, and 

The loin and haunch (a leg and part of the loin). 

The leg is best l^oiled, xmless the mutton is young and 
very tender. Wash the meat well, and dry with a clean 
cloth. Let your fire be clear and strong ; put the meat on 
with a little water in the dripping-pan. If you think well 
of the plan (and I do), let this be a cupful of boiling water 
dashed over the meat when it is fii'st put down to roast, 
and left to trickle into the pan. I have elsewhere explained 
the advantages of the method. Allow, in roasting, about 
twelve minutes per jjound, if the fire is good. Baste often 
• — at first with salt and water, afterward with the gravy. 
If it is in danger of browning too fast, cover with a large 
sheet of white paper. Roast lamb in the same manner, 
but not so long. Skim the gravy well, and thicken very 
slightly with browned flour. Serve with currant jelly. 

Roast Mutton a la Venison. 

A Christmas saddle of mutton is very fine, prepared as 
follows : Wash it well, inside and out, with vinegar. Do 
not wipe it, but hang it \ip to dry iii a cool cellar. When 
the vinegar has dried off, throw a clean cloth over it, to 
keep out the dust. On the next day but one, take down 
the meat and sponge it over again with vinegar, then put 
it back in its place in the cellar. Repeat this process tlu'ee 
times a week for a fortnight, keeping the meat hung in a 
cold place, and covered, except while you are washing it. 
When you are ready to cook it, wipe it off with a dry 
cloth, but do not wash it. Roast — basting for the first 



MUrrON AND r.AMB. 100 

hour witli Liitter and water; afterward with the gi'avy, 
and keeping the meat covered with a large tin pan for two 
hours. A large saddle of mutton will require four hours to 
roast. When it is done, remove to a dish, and cover to 
keep it hot. Skim the gravy, and add half a teacupful 
of walnut, mushroom, or tomato catsup, a glass of Ma- 
deira wine, and a tablespoonful of browned flour. Boil 
\ip once, and send to table in a sauce-boat. Always send 
around cui-rant or some other tart jelly with roast mutton. 
If properly cooked, a saddle of mutton, prepared in accord- 
ance with tliese directions, will strongly resemble venison 
in taste. An old Virginia gentleman whom I \Tsed to 
know, always hung up the finest saddle his j)lantation 
could furnish six loeeks before Christmas, and had it 
sponged off with vinegar every other day, until the morn- 
ing of the impoi'tant 25th ; and the excellence of his mut- 
ton was the talk of the neighborhood. It can certainly be 
kept a fortnight anywhere at that season. 

Boiled Mutton. 

Wash a leg of mutton clean, and wipe dry. Do not 
leave the knuckle and shank so long as to be unshapely. 
Put into a pot with hot water (salted) enough to cover it, 
and boil imtil you ascertain, by probing with a fork, that 
it is tender in the thickest part. Skim off all the scum as 
it rises. Allow about twelve minutes to each pound. Take 
from the fire, drain perfectly dry, and serve with melted 
butter, with capers, or nasturtium seed ; or, if you have 
neither of these, some cucvimber or gherkin-pickle stirred 
into it. If you wish to use the broth for soup, pxit in very 
little salt while boiling ; if not, salt well, and boil the meat 
in a cloth. 



110 COMMON SEN-SE. 

Mutton Stew. ►J* 

Cut up from three to four pounds of mutton, — the in- 
ferior portions will do as well as any other, — crack tho 
bones, and remove all the fat. Put on the meat — the 
pieces not more than an inch and a half in length — in a pol 
with enough cold water to cover well, and set it where it 
will heat gradually. Add nothing else until it has stewed 
an hour, closely covered ; then throw in half a pound of 
salt pork cut into strips, a chopped onion, and some pep- 
per ; cover and stew an hour longer, or until the meat is 
very tender. Make out a little paste, as for the crust of 
a meat-pie ; cut into squares, and drop in the steAv, Boil 
ten minutes, and season further by the addition of a little 
parsley and thyme. Thicken with two spoonfuls of flour 
stirred into a cup of cold milk. Boil up once, and serve 
in a tureen or deep covered dish. 

If green corn is in season, this stew is greatly improved 
by adding, an hour before it is taken from the fire, the 
grains of half a dozen ears, cut from the cob. 

Try it for a cheap family dinner, and you will repeat 
the experiment often. Lamb is even better for your pur- 
pose than mutton. 

Mutton Chops. 

If your butcher has not done it, — and the chances are 
that he has not, unless you stood by to see it attended to, — 
trim off the superflvious fat and skin, so as to give the 
chops a certain litheness and elegance of shape. Dip each 
in beaten egg, roll in pounded cracker, and fry in hot lard 
or dripping. If the fat is unsalted, sprinkle the chops 
with salt before rolling in the egg. Serve W]) dry and hot. 

Or, 
You may omit the egg and cracker, and broil on a gi-idiron 
over a bi'ight fire. Put. a little salt and pepper upon each 



MUTTON AND LAMB. Ill 

jhop, and butter them before tliey go to table. Cook lamb 
chops ixi the same way. 

Mutton Cutlets. {BaheJ.) 

Cut them from the neck, and trim neatly. Lay aside 
the bits of bone and meat you cut off, to make gravy. 
Pour a little melted butter over the cutlets, and let them 
lie in it for fifteen minutes, keeping them just warm enough 
to prevent the butter from hardening ; then dip each in 
beaten egg, roll in cracker-ciiimbs, and lay them in your 
dripping-pan with a very little water at the bottom. Bake 
quickly, and baste often with butter and water. Put on 
the bones, &c., in enough cold water to cover them; stew, 
and season with sweet herbs, pepper, and salt, with a spoon- 
ful of tomato catsup. Strain when all the substance is 
extracted from the meat and bones ; thicken with browned 
flour, and pour over the cutlets when they are served. 

Mutton Ham. 

For a leg of mutton weighing 12 lbs., take — 

1 ounce of black pepper, or ^ ounce of cayenne, 
^ lb, brown sugar, 
1 ounce saltpetre, 
1^ lb. salt. 

The day after the sheep is killed, mix the sxigar, pepper, 
and saltpetre, and i*ub well into the meat for nearly fifteen 
minutes, until the outer part of it is thoroughly impreg- 
nated with the seasoning. Put the ham into a large earth- 
enware vessel, and cover it with the salt. Let it remain 
thus for three weeks, turning it every day and basting it 
with the brine; adding to this, after the first week, a tea- 
cupful of vinegar. When the ham is removed from the 
pickle, wash with cold water, then with vinegar, and hang 



112 COMJION SENSE. 

it up ill a cool cellar for a week, at least, before it la 
used. 

Soak an kour in fair water before boiling. 

Or if you choose to smoke it for several clays after it is 
corned, it can be chipped and eaten raw, like jerked ven- 
ison or dried beef. 

Most of the receipts above given will apply as well to 
lamb as to mutton. There are sevei-al exceptions, however, 
which you will do well to note. Lamb should never be 
boiled except in stews. It is tasteless and sodden cooked 
in this naanner, on account of its immaturity. But, on the 
other hand, a lamb-pie, prepared like one of beef or ven- 
ison, is excellent, while mutton-pies have usually a strong, 
tallowy taste, that spoils them for delicate palates. 

Roast lamb should be eaten Avith mint sauce (if you 
fancy it), currant jelly, and asparagus or green peas. Let- 
tuce-salad is likewise a desirable accompaniment. 

Mutton or Lamb Rechauffe, *fi 

Cut some slices of cold underdone mutton or lamb ; put 
them in a frying-pan with enough gravy or broth to cover 
them. Or, if you have neither of them, make a gravy of 
butter, warm water, and catsup. Heat to boiling, and stir 
.in pepper and a great spoonful of currant jelly. Send to 
table in a chafing-dish, with the gravy poured about the 
meat. 

Or, 

You can put a lump of the butter in the bottom of the 
pan, and when it boils, lay in the slices of meat, turning 
them before they have time to crisp. As soon as they are 
thoroughly heated take them out, lay vipon a hot dish, 
sprinkle with pepper and salt, and serve with a small spoon 
ful of jelly laid upon each. 



VEAL. lli 



VEAL 



Despite the ])rejmlice, secret or expressed, Avhich pre- 
vails in many miuds against veal, — one which the wise and 
witty " Country Parson " has as sui-ely fostered among 
reading people, as did Charles Lamb the partiality for 
roast pig, — the excellent and attractive dishes that own this 
as their base are almost beyond number. For soups it is 
invaluable, and in entrees and recliauffes it plays a distin- 
guished part. From his head to his feet, the animal that 
furnishes us with this important element of success in what 
should be the pi-ime object of cookery, to wit, to jilease 
while Ave nourish, has proved himself so useful as an ally 
that it behooves us to lift the stigma from the name of 
" calf," provided he be not too infantine. In that case he 
degenerates into an insipid mass of pulpy muscle and gela- 
tine, and deserves the bitterest sneers that have been flung 

at his kind. 

Roast Veal. 

LOIN. 

Veal requires a longer time to roast than mutton or 
lamb. It is fair to allow at least a quarter of an hour to 
each pound. Heat gradually, baste frequently — at first 
with salt and water, afterward with gravy. When the 
meat is nearly done, dredge lightly with flour, and baste 
once with melted butter. Skim the gravy ; thicken with a 
teasjioonful of flour, boil up, and put into the gravy-boat. 

Should the meat brown too fast, cover with white paper. 
The juices, which make up the characteristic flavor of meat, 
are oftener dried out of veal than any other flesh that comeg 
to our tables. 

BREAST. 

Make incisions between the ribs and the meat, and fill 
with a force-meat made of fine bread-crumbs, bits of pork 



114: COMMON SENSE. 

or ham chopped " exceeding small," salt, pepper, thyme, 
sweet marjoram, and beaten egg. Save a little to thicken 
the gravy. Roast slowly, basting often, and the verdict of 
the eaters will differ from theirs who pi'onounce this thf- 
coarsest part of the veal. Dredge, at the last, with flour, 
and baste well once with butter, as with the loin. 

FILLET. 

Make ready a dressing of bread-crumbs, chopped thyme 
and parsley; a little nxitmeg, pepper and salt, rubbed to- 
gether with some melted butter or beef suet ; moisten with 
milk or hot water, and bind with a beaten egg. 

Take out the bone from the meat, and pin securely into 
a round with skewers ; then pass a stout twine several 
times about the fillet, or a b^nd of muslin. Fill the cavity 
from which the bone was taken with this stuffing, and thrust 
between the folds of the meat, besides making incisions 
with a thin, sharp knife to receive it. Once in a while 
slip in a strip of fat pork or ham. Baste at first with salt 
and water, afterward with giavy. At the last, dredge with 
flour and baste with butter. 

SHOULDER. 

Stuff as above, making horizontal incisions near the 
bone to receive the dressing, and roast in like manner. 

Yeal Cutlets, 

Dip in beaten egg when you have sprinkled a little 
pepper and salt over them ; then roll in cracker-crumbs, 
and fry in hot dripping or lard. If you use butter or drip- 
ping, add a little boiling water to the gi'avy when the meat 
is dished; thicken with browned flour, boil up once, send- 
inii to table in a boat. 



VEAL. 115 

Or, 
You can rub tlie cutlets well with melted butter, pepper 
and broil on a gridiron like beef-steak, buttering very well 
after dishing. 

. Yeal Chops 

Are more juicy and less apt to be tough and solid than cut- 
lets. Trim the bone as with mutton chops, and fry, dip- 
ping in beaten egg and cracker-crumbs. Add a little pars- 
ley and a minced shallot to the gravy. 

Veal Steak. 

This should be thinner than beef-steak, and be done 
throughout. Few j^ersons are fond of rare veal. Broil 
upon a well-greased gridiron over a clear fire, and turn fre- 
quently while the steaks are cooking. Put into a saucepan 
four or five young onions minced fine, a great teasj)oonful 
of tomato catsup, or twice the quantity of stewed tomato, 
a lump of butter the size of an egg, and a little thyme or 
parsley, with a small teacvipful of hot water. Let them 
stew together while the steaks are broiling, thickening, be- 
fore you turn the gi'avy out, with a spoonful of browned 
flour. Add, if you please, a half-glass of wine. Boil up 
once hard, and when the steaks are dished, with a small bit 
of batter upon each, pour the mixture over and around 
them. 

Spinach is as natural an accompaniment to veal as are 
green peas to lamb. 

Veal Pies. 

Let your veal be juicy and not too fat. Take out all 
the bone, and p\it with the fat and refuse bits, such as skin 
or gi-istle, in a saucepan, with a large teacupful of cold wa- 
ter to make gi'avy. Instead of chopping the veal, cut in 



116 COMMON 8EKSE. 

tliin, even slices. Line a pudding-disli with a good pastci 
and put a layer of veal in the bottom ; then one of hard- 
boiled eggs sliced, each piece buttered and peppered before 
it is laid upon the veal ; cover these with sliced ham or 
thin stiips of salt pork. Squeeze a few drops of lemon- 
juice upon the ham. Then another layer of veal, and so 
on until you are ready for the gravy. This sliould have 
been stewing for half an hour or so, with the addition of 
pepper and a bunch of aromatic herbs. Strain through a 
thin cloth and pour over the pie. Cover with crust and 
bake two hours. 

Or, 

Butter a large bowl veiy thickly, and line with sliced hard- 
boiled eggs. Then put in, in perjiendicular layers, a lining 
of veal cut in thin slices, and seasoned with pepper. Next, 
one of sliced ham, each slice peppered and sprinkled with 
lemon-juice, more veal and more ham, until the dish is 
packed to the brim. Cover with a thick paste made of 
flour and hot water, just stiff enough to handle with ease. 
Press this closely to the outside of the bowl, which should 
not be at all greasy. Let it overlap the rim about half an 
inch. Some cooks substitute a cloth well floured, but it 
does not keep in the essence of the meats as well as the 
paste. Set the bowl in a pot of hot water, not so deep that 
it will bubble over the top. It is better that it should not 
touch the paste rim. Boil steadily — not hard — for at least 
three hours. Remove the paste the next day, when bowl 
and contents are perfectly cold, and turn o\it the pie into a 
large plate or flat dish. Cut in circular slices — thin as a 
wafer — beginning at the toji, keeping your carver horizon- 
tal, and you have a delicious relish for the supper-table, or 
side-dish for dinner. Set in a cool place, and in winter it 
will keep several days. 

This is the " weal and hammer pie " endorsed by Mr 



VEAL. 117 

"Wegg as a good thing " for mellering the organ," and is a 
great favorite in England. It is a good plan to butter the 
eggs as well as the dish, as much of the success of the pie 
depends ujjon the manner in which it is turned out. Also, 
upon the close packing of the sliced meat. The salt ham 
pi'events the need of other salt. 

Stewed Fillet of Veal. 

Stuff, and bind with twine as for roasting. Then covei 
the top and sides with sliced ham which has been already 
boiled, securing with skewers, or twine crossing the meat 
in all directions. Lay in a pot, put in two large cups of 
boiling water, cover immediately and closely, and stew 
gently — never letting it cease to boil, yet never boiling hard, 
for four or live hours. A large fillet will reqviire nearly 
five hours. Remove the cover as seldom as })ossible, and 
only to ascertain whether the water has boiled away. If 
it is too low, replenish from the boiling kettle. Take off 
the strings when the meat is done ; arrange the ham about 
the fillet in the dish, and serve a bit with each slice of veal. 
Strain the gravy, thicken with flour, boil up once, and send 
in a boat. 

Serve with stewed tomatoes and spinach. 

Stewed Knuckle of Yeal. 

Put the meat into a pot with two quai-ts of boiling wa- 
ter, half a pound of salt pork or ham cut into strips, a 
carrot, two onions, a bunch of parsley and one of summer 
savoiy — all cut fine — two dozen whole pepper-corns, and 
stew, closely covered, fur three hours. When done, take 
the meat from the pot and lay in the dish. Strain the 
gi-avy, thicken Avith rice-flour, boil up once, and pour ovez 
the meat. 



118 COMMON senst;. 

Veal Scallop. »J« 

Chop some cold roast or stewed veal very fine, put a 
layer in tlie bottom of a buttered pudding-dish, and season 
with pepper and salt. Next have a layer of finely powder- 
ed crackers. Strew some bits of butter upon it and wet 
with a little milk ; then more veal seasoned as before, and 
another round of crackei'-crumbs, with butter and milk. 
When the dish is full, wet well with gravy or broth, dilu- 
ted with warm water. Spread over all a thick layer of 
cracker seasoned with salt, wet into a paste with milk and 
bound with a beaten egg or two, if the dish be large. Stick 
butter-bits thickly over it ; invert a tin pan so as to cover 
all and keep in the steam, and bake — if small, half an hour ; 
three-quarters will suffice for a large dish. Remove the 
cover ten minutes before it is served, and brown. 

This simple and economical dish should be an acquaint- 
ance with all who are fond of veal in any shape. Children 
generally like it exceedingly, and I have heard more than 
one gentleman of excellent judgment in culinary aifaii'S 
declare that the best thing he knew about roast veal v as 
that it was the harbinger of scallop on the second day. 

Try it, and do not get it too dry. 

Yeal Pates. 

Mince the veal as above, and roll three or four eracl ara 
to powder. Also, chop up some cold ham and mix v ith 
the veal in the proportion of one-third ham and two-thfrds 
veal. Then add the cracker, and wet well with gravy and 
a little milk. If you have no gravy, stir into a cup of hot 
milk two tablespoonfuls of butter and a beaten egg. Sea- 
son well to your taste, and bake in pate pans lined ,vith 
puff-paste. If eaten hot, send to table in the tins. H jold, 
slip the pates out and pile i;pon a plate, with sprigs oi para- 



VEAL. 119 

ley between. A little oyster-liquor is a marked improve- 
ment to the gravy. 

Stewed Calf's-Head. 

Wash the head in several waters, and taking out the 
brains, set them by in a cool place. Tie the head in a flour- 
ed cloth and boil it two hours in hot water slightly salted. 
Wash the brains carefully, picking out all the bits of skin 
and membrane, cleansing them over and over until they 
are perfectly white. Then stew in just enough water to 
cover them. Take them out, mash smooth with the back 
of a wooden spoon, and add gradually, that it may not 
lump, a small teacupful of the water in which the head is 
boiled. Season with chopped parsley, a pinch of sage, pep- 
per, salt, and powdered cloves, with a great spoonful of but- 
ter. Set it over the fire to simmer in a saucepan until you 
are ready. When the head is tender, take it up and drain 
very dry. Score the top, and rub it well over with melted 
butter ; dredge with flour and set in the oven to brown. 
Or, jon can use beaten egg and cracker-crumbs in place of 
the butter and flour. 

When you serve the head, pour the gravy over it. 

Never skin a calf's-head. Scald as you would that of 
a pig. A little lye in the water will remove the hair — as" 
will also pounded rosin, applied before it is put into the water. 

Calf's,Heai> {Scallojyed). *^ 

Clean the head, remove the brains, and set in a cool 
place. Boil the head until the meat slips easily from the 
bones. Take it out and chop fine, season with herbs, pep- 
per, and salt ; then put in layers into a buttered jjudding- 
dish with bits of butter between each layer. Moisten well 
with the liquor in which the head was boiled. Wash the 
bi-ains very thoroughly, removing all the membrane. Beat 



120 COMl^ION SKNSE. 

them into a smooth paste, season with pepper and salt, and 
stir in with them two eggs beaten very light. Spread this 
evenly over the scallop, dredge the top with a little flovir, 
and bake to a delicate brown. Half an hour will be long 
enough. 

Sweet-Bkeads {Fried). *^ 

"Wash very carefully, and dry with a linen cloth. Lard 
with narrow strips of fat salt pork, set closely together. Use 
for this purjjose a larding- needle. Lay the sweet-breads in 
a clean, hot frying-pan, which has been well buttered or 
greased, and cook to a fine brown, turning frequently until 
the pork is crisp. 

Sweet-Breads {Broiled). »J< 

Parboil, rub them well with butter, and broil on a clean 
gridiron. Turn frequently, and now and then roll over in 
a plate containing some hot melted butter. This will pre- 
vent them from getting too dry and hard. 

Sweet-Breads {Stewed). »J< 

When you have washed them, and removed all bits of 
skin and fatty matter, cover with cold water, and heat to a 
boil. Pour off the hot water, and cover with cold until the 
sweet-breads are firm. If you desire to haA'e them very 
rich, lard as for frying before you put in the second water. 
They are more delicate, however, if the pork be left oi\t. 
Stew in a very little water the second time. "When they 
are tender, add for each sweet-bread a heaping teasjioonful 
of butter, and a little chopped parsley, with pepj^er, and 
salt, and a little cream. Let them simmer in this graNy for 
five minutes, then take them up. Send to table in a covered 
dish, with the gravy poured over them. 

If you lard the sweet-breads, substitute for the cream in 



VEAL. 121 

the gravy a glass of good wine. In this case, take tho 
sweet-breads out before it is put into the gravy. Boil up 
once and pour over them. 

Sweet-Breads {Roasted). 

Parboil and throw into cold water, where let them stand 
for fifteen minutes. Then change to more cold water for 
five minutes longer. Wipe perfectly dry. Lay tftem in 
your diipping-pan, and roast, basting with butter and water 
until they begin to brown. Then withdraw them for an 
instant, roll in beaten egg, then in cracker-crumbs, and re- 
turn to the fire for ten minutes longer, basting meanwhile 
twice with melted butter. Lay in a chafing-dish while you 
add to the dripping half a cup hot water, some chopped 
parsley, a teaspoonful browned flour, and the juice of half 
a lemon. Pour over the sweet-breads before sending to 
table. 

Jelliei Veal. 

Wash a knuckle of veal, and cut it into three pieces. 
Boil it slowly until the meat will slip easily from the bones ; 
take out of the liquor ; remove all the bones, and chop the 
meat fine. Season with salt, pepper, two shallots chopped 
fine as 2)ossible, mace and thyme, or, if you like, sage. Put 
back into the liquor, and boil until it is almost dry and 
can be stii-red with difficulty. Turn into a mould until next 
day. Set on the table cold, garnish with parsley, and cut 
in slices. The juice of a lemon, stirred in just before it is 
taken from the fire, is an imj)rovement. 

Calf's-Head in a Mould. 

Boil a calf's-head until tender, the day before you wish 
to use it. When perfectly cold, chop — not too small — and 
season to taste Avith pepper, salt, mace, and the juice of a 
6 



123 COMMON SENSE. 

lemon. Prepai'e lialf as much cold liam, fat and lean — also 
minced — as you have of the chopped calf's-head. Butter a 
mould well, and lay in the bottom a layer of the calfs- 
liead, then one of ham, and so on until the shape is full, 
pressing each ^.ayer hard, when you have moistened it with 
veal gravy or the liquor in which the head was boiled. 
Pour more gravy over the top, and when it has soaked in 
well, i^ver with a paste made of flour and water. Bake 
one hour. Remove the paste when it is quite cold, and 
turn out carefvdly. Cut perpendicularly. 

This is quite as good a relish when made of cold roast or 
stewed veal and ham. It will keep several days in cool 
weather. 

Veal Olives with Oysteks. 

Cut large, smooth slices from a fillet of veal, or vea* 
chops will do qviite as Avell. Trim them into a uniform 
shape and size, and spread each neatly with force-meat 
made of bread-crumbs and a little chopped pork, seasoned 
with pepper and salt. Over this spread some chopped 
oysters, about three to a good-sized slice of veal. Roll 
them up carefully and closely, and pin each with two small 
tin or wooden skewers. Lay them in a dripping-pan ; dash 
a teacupful of boiling water over them, and roast, basting 
at least twice with melted butter. When they ai-e brown, 
remove to a chafing-dish, and cover, while you add a little 
oyster -liquor to the gravy left in the dripping-pan. Let 
this simmer for three or four minutes ; thicken M'ith a tea- 
spoonful of browned flour, and boil up once. Withdraw 
the skewers cautiously, so as not to break the olives ; pour 
the gravy over and around them, and serve. If you have 
no skewers, bind the olives with pack-thread, ciitting it, of 
coiTrse, before sending to table. 

Serve with cranberry jelly. 



VEAL. 123 

Minced Yeal. 

Take the remains of a cold roast of veal fillet, shoulder, 
or breast, and cut all the meat from the bones. Put the 
latter, with the ovitside slices and the gristly pieces, into a 
savicepan, with a cup of cold water, some sweet herbs, pep- 
l^er, and salt. If you have a bit of bacon convenient, or a 
ham-bone, add this and omit the salt. Stew all together 
for an hour, then strain, thicken with flour, return to the 
fire, and boil five minutes longer, stii-ring in a tablespoon- 
ful of butter. 

Meanwhile, mince the cold veal, and when the gravy ia 
ready put this in a little at a time. Let it almost boil, when 
add two tablespoonfuls of cream, or three of milk, stirring 
all the while. Lastly, squeeze in the juice of a lemon, and a 
moment later half a glass of sherry or Madeira wine. 

The mince-meat should be dry enough to heap into a 
shape in a flat dish or chafing-dish. Lay triangles of but- 
tered toast about the base of the mound, and on the top a 
poached egg. 

The remains of cold roast beef treated in this manner, 
substituting for the toast balls of mashed 2>otato, will make 
a neat and palatable dish. 

Send around spinach or stewed tomatoes with minced 
veal ; scraped horseradish steeped in vinegar with the beef. 

Veal Cutlets a la Maintenon. 

The cutlets should be nearly three-quarters of an inch 
thick, and ti'im in shape. Dip each in beaten egg, then 
into pounded cracker which has been seasoned with pow- 
dered sweet herbs, pepper, and salt. Wrap each cutlet in a 
half-sheet of note or letter joaper, well buttered ; lay them 
upon a buttered gridiron and broil over a clear fire, turning 
often and dexterously. You can secure the papers by fiing- 



124 COMMON SENSE. 

ingtlie ends, and tAvisting these after tlie cutlets are jMit in 
this is neater than to pin them together. In trying thia 
dish for the fii'st time, have ready a sufficient number of 
duplicate papei'S in a clean, hot dish. If your envelopes are 
much soiled or darkened "while the cutlets are broiling, 
transfer quickly when done to the clean warm ones, twist 
the ends, and serve. Cutlets prepared in tliis manner are 
sent to table in their cloaks, ranged symmetrically upon a 
hot chafing-dish. 

The expedient of the clean papers is a "trick of the 
trade," amateur housewives will observe with satisfaction. 
Epicures profess to enjoy veal cooked in covers far more 
than when the flavor and juices escape in broiling without 
them. Empty every drop of gravy from the soiled papers 
into the clean over the cutlets. 

Ckoquettes of Calf's Brains. 

Wash the brains very thoroxighly until they are free from 
membranous matter and perfectly white. Beat them 
smooth ; season with a pinch of powdered sage, pepper, and 
salt. Add two tablespoonfuls fine bread-crumbs moistened 
with milk, and a beaten egg. Roll into balls with floured 
hands, dip in beaten egg, then cracker-crvimbs, and fry in 
butter or veal-drippings. 

These make a pleasant accompaniment to boiled spinach. 
Heap the vegetable in the centre of the dish, arrange the 
balls about it, and give one to each person who wishes 
spinach. 

Calf's Liver {Roasted). 

Soak the Kver in salt and water an hour to draw out the 
blood. Wipe perfectly dry, and stuflf with a forcemeat 
made of bread-crumbs, two slices of fat salt pork, chopped 
small, a shallot, peppei', salt, and nutmeg j sweet maijoram 



VEAL. 125 

and thyme, and, if you choose, a little sage. ISIoisten this 
with butter melted in a very little hot water, and two raw 
eggs, well beaten. In order to get this into the liver, make 
an incision with a narrow sharj) knife, and without en- 
larging the aperture where the blade entered, move tho 
point dexterously to and fro, to enlarge the cavity inside. 
Stuff this full of the forcemeat, sew or skewer up the outer 
orifice ; lard with strips of salt pork, and roast for an hour*, 
basting twice with butter and water, afterward with the 
gravy in the di'ipping-pan. Pour the gravy over the liver 
when done. 

Roasted liver is very good cold, cut into slices lilce tongue. 

Calf's Liver (JFried). 

Slice the liver smoothly, and lay in salt and water to 
draw out the blood. Lard each slice, when you have wiped 
it dry, with slices of fat salt pork, drawn through at regular 
distances, and projecting slightly on each side. Lay in a 
clean frying-pan and fry brown. When done, take out the 
slices, arrange them neatly on a hot dish, and set aside to 
keep warm. Add to the gravy in the frying-pan a chopped 
onion, a half-cup of hot water, pej^per, the juice of a lemon, 
and thicken with brown flour. Boil up well, run through 
a cullender to remove the onion and the bits of crisped 
pork that may have been broken off in cooking, pour over 
the liver, and serve hot. 

Pigs' livers can be cooked in the same way. 

Calf's Liver (Stewed). 

Slice the liver and lay in salt and water an hour. Tlien 
cut into dice and put over the fire, with enough cold water 
to cover it well. Cover and stew steadily for an hour, 
when add salt, pepper, a little mace, sweat mai-joram, pars- 



126 COJIilON SEXSE. 

ley, and a teasi^oonful Worcestersliire sauce. Stew again 
steadily, not fast, for half an hour longer, when put in a 
table-spoonful of butter, two of browned flour — wet wita 
cold water, a teaspoonful of lemon-juice and one of cur- 
rant jelly. Boil five minutes longer, and dish. A little 
wine is an improvement. 

Or, 
Put in with the liver-dice some of salt pork — say a hand- 
ful — and when you season, a chopped onion, and omit the 
jelly at the last, substituting some tomato catsup. 

Imitation Pates de Foie Gras. ►{« 

Boil a calf's liver until very tender in water that haa 
been slightly salted, and in another vessel a nice calf's 
tongue. It is best to do this the day before you make 
yoMY pate, as they should be not only cold, but fii-m when 
used. Cut the liver into bits, and rub these gradually to a 
smooth paste in a Wedgewood mortar, moistening, as you 
go on, with melted butter. Work into this paste, which 
should be quite soft, a quarter-teaspoonful of cayenne pep- 
per, or twice the quantity of white or black, half a grated 
nutmeg, a little cloves, a teasj^oonful of Worcestershire 
sauce, salt to taste, a full teaspoonful of made mustard, and 
a tablespoonful of boiling water, in which a minced onion 
has been steeped until the flavor is extracted. Work all 
together thoroughly, and pack in jelly-jars with air-tight 
covers, or, if you have them, in joaie'-jars. They give a 
foreign air to the compound, and aid imagination in deceiv- 
ing the palate. Butter the inside of the jars well, and 
pack the ^;>aie ver'y hard, inserting here and there square 
and triangiilar bits of the tongue, which should be pared 
and cut up for this purpose. These simulate the trufiies im 
bedded in the genuine pCltes from Strasbourg and elsewhere. 



VEAL. 127 

When tlie jar is packed, and smooth as marble on the sur- 
face, cover with melted b^^tter. Let this harden, piit on 
the liJ, and set away in a cool place. In winter it will 
keep for weeks, and is very nice for luncheon or tea. Mako 
into sandwiches, or set on in the jars, if they are neat and 
ornamental. 

The resemblance in taste to the real pate, de foie gras 
is remarkable, and the domestic article is po2:»ular with tlie 
lovers of that delicacy. Pigs' livers make a. very {H.ir pdte. 
If you can procure the livers of sevei-al fowls and treat as 
above, substituting bits of the inside of the gizzard for truf- 
fles, you will find the result even moi-e satisfactory. 

Yeal Marble. 

Boil a beef-tongue the day before it is to be used, and a 
like number of pounds of lean veal ; or, the lean of a well- 
cooked fillet will do as well. Grind first one, then the 
other, in a sausage-cutter, keeping them in separate vessels 
until you are ready to pack. If yoii have no machine for 
this purpose, chop very fine. Season the tongue with pep- 
per, powdei-ed sweet herbs, a teaspoonful of made mustard, 
a little nutmeg, and cloves — just a pinch of each ; the veal 
in like manner, with the addition of salt. Pack in alter- 
nate spoonfuls, irregularly as possible, in cups, bowls, or 
jars which have been well buttered. Press very hard as 
you go on, smooth the top, and cover with melted butter. 
When this cools, close the cans, and keep in a cool, dry 
place. Turn out whole, or cut in slices for tea. It is a 
pretty and savory relish, garnished with parsley or the 
blanched tops of celeiy. 

You can use ground ham instead of tongue. It is hard- 
ly so good, but is more economical. 



128 COMMON SENSE. 

PORK. 

At the Soiitli, where, in spite of the warm climate, the 
consiimjition of pork is double that of the North, the full- 
gi-OAvn hog is seldom represented by any of his parts at the 
table, fresh or pickled, unless it be during killing-time ; 
then fresh spare-ribs, chine, and steak, with other succu- 
lent bits, are welcome upon the choicest bills of fare. The 
rest of the animal — ham, shoulders, and middlings — is con- 
signed to the j)acking-barrel, and ultimately to the smoke- 
house. But, in cool weathei", "shoat" — i. e., pig under 
six months of age — is abundantly displayed in market, and 
highly esteemed by all classes. The meat is fine and sweet, 
and, unless too fat, nearly as delicate as that of chicken — 
a very different looking and tasting dish from the gi'oss, 
oleaginous joints and "chx;nks" ofiered for sale in many 
other regions as " nice young pork." Those of my read- 
ers who can connnand " shoat " are to be heartily congi-atu- 
lated. Those whose butchers dispense only portions of the 
mature porker will do well, in my opinion, if they rarely 
admit him to their families before he has been salted, and 
been thereby purged of many unwholesome properties. 
Few stomachs, save those of out-door laborers, can digest 
the fresh meat of a two or three, or even one year old hog. 
This is the truthful, but, to unaccustomed ears, offensive 
name for him at the Soiith and AYest, whei-e his qualities 
and habits are best known. 

The parts of a propei'ly dissected hog ■ are the hams, 
shoulders, griskin or chine, the loin, middlings, spare-ribs, 
head, feet, liver, and haslet. The choice portions are hams, 
shoulders, and, for roasting, the loin. All hogs should be 
kept up and well fed for three weeks, at least, before they 
are killed ; their styes be frequently cleaned, and furnished 
with abundance of water, renewed every day. Sir G runter 



PORK. 129 

would be a more cleanly creature if he were allowed more 
extensive water privileges. If it were possible — and in 
the country this may sometimes be done — to build his pen 
on the bank of a running stream, he would speedily redeem 
his character from the stain cast upon it by the popular 
verdict, and the superior quality of the meat repay the 
thoughtful kindness of his owner. It is a disgrace to 
humanity, hardly second to the barbarities of swill-milk 
manufactories, this compvilsory filth of any domestic ani- 
mal. Those who, like myself, have been loathing witnesses 
of the pig-pens upon tiie premises of well-to-do farmers — • 
the receptacles of the vilest slops and offal, never cleaned 
except during the yearly removal of manure from barn- 
yard to field — cannot marvel at the growing prejudice 
against pork in all its varieties that pervades oiir best 
classes. We feed the hog with the oftscourings (this is 
literal) of house, garden, and table ; bed him in mii-e, and 
swell him with acetous fermentation, not to say active de- 
composition, and then abuse him for being what we have 
made him. I am persuaded — and wiser people than I de- 
clare — that hog-scrofula and cholera, and the rest of the 
train of fleshly ills that are the terror of pork-raisers, have, 
one and all, their root in this unseemly inhumanity. Es- 
chew fresh pork we may, but we cannot dispense with hams, 
shoulders, and, most valviable of all to the cook, lard and 
pickled pork. Ileal sausage, porcine and home-made, is still 
sweet and pleasant to the unpamjiered palate ; and of roast 
pig, the gentlest and most genial of English essayists did 
not disdain to become the eulogist. In memory of his use- 
fulness, in belief of the healthfulness which should be his 
birthright, and the safeguard of his consumers, let us treat 
Bristle well — I do not say philosophically, but sensibly and 
kindly. 
• A pig should not be allowed to eat anything for twenty. 
6* 



130 COMMON SENSE. 

foul" hours before lie is killed. After he is butchered, greai 
care should be exercised to keep the pork from tainting ; 
it spoils more readily, when fresh, than any other meat. 
Cook all kinds of 2)ork thoroughly. When imderdone it 
is not only unpalatable, but exceedingly vmwholesome. 

Roast Leg of Pork. 

One weighing about seven pounds is enough, even for a 
large family. If the pig is young, the leg will be even 
smaller. Score the skin in squares, or 2:)arallel lines run- 
ning from side to side, for the convenience of the carver. 
Put it down to roast with a very little water in the pan be- 
low. Heat gradually until the fat begins to ooze from the 
meat, when quicken the fire to a red, steady glow. Baste 
only with its own gravy, and do this often, that the skin 
may not be hard or tough. When done take it up, skim 
the gravy thoroughly, put in half a cup of boiling water, 
thicken with brown flour, add pepper, salt, and the juice of 
a lemon, and serve in a boat. 

Or, 

If the joint be that of a full-grown hog, rub into the top, 
after scoring it deeply, a force-meat of bread-crumbs season- 
ed with sage and chojiped onion, wet with the juice of a 
lemon or a very little vinegar ; pepper and salt to taste. 
Hub this in hard until the cracks are tilled. With a sharp 
knife make incisions close to the knuckle-bone, and stuff 
with the forcemeat, tying a string tightly about it afterward, 
to prevent the escape of the seasoning. Pub over once with 
butter, when the meat is warm throughout ; then baste with 
the fat. Skim all the fat from the drippings that can be re- 
moved before making the gravy. 

Send around tomato or apple sauce, and pickles, with 
roast pork. 



PORK. 131 

Loin of Poek. 

Cook as you would a leg, allowing twenty Vninutes to a 
pound in roasting. This is a good rule for fresh pork, the 
meat being coarser aud of closer grain than are more deli- 
cate meats. 

A shoulder is roasted in the same way. 

EoAST Spake-Rib. 

When first put down to the fire, cover with a greased 
paper until it is half done. Remove it then, and dredge 
with flour. A few minutes later, baste once with butter, 
and afterward, every little while, with its own gravy. This 
is necessaiy, the spare-rib being a very dry piece. Just 
before you take it up, strew over the surface thickly with 
fine bread-crumbs seasoned with powdered sage, pepper, and 
salt, and a small onion minced into almost invisible bits. 
Let it cook five minutes and baste once more with biitter. 
Skim the gravy, add a half-cupful of hot water, thicken with 
brown flour, squeeze in the juice of a lemon, strain, and 
pour over the meat in the dish. 

Send tomato catsup around with it, or if you prefer, 
put a liberal spoonful in the gravy, after it is strained. 

Roast Chine. 

A chine is treated precisely as is the spare-rib, except 
that the strip of skin rxmning along the back is scored close- 
ly. If you wish, you can omit the bread-crumb crust, the 
onion and sage. In carving, cut thin horizontal slices from 
the ribs. Chine is best cold. The meat next the ribs is 
delicious when scraped off and made into sandwiclies, or 
laid upon buttered toast. 

Or, 

You can wash the chine over with beaten egg, dredge 
■with cracker-crumbs, seasoned with salt and pepper, and 



132 COMMON SENSE. 

roast, basting witli butter and water once wlien tlie meat is 
heated through, afterward with its own gravy. This is a 
palatable supper-dish when cold. Garnish with cucumber- 
pickles cut in round slices. 

PtOAST Pig. 

A month-old pig, if it be well-grown and plump, is best 
for this purpose, it is hardly possible that any lady-house- 
keeper will ever be called ixpon to do the butcher's work 
upon the bodies of fall-grown hogs, or even " slioat " — a 
task that requires the use of hatchet or cleaver. It is well 
that she shoiild know how to clean and dress the baby pig, 
which is not larger than a Thanksgiving turkey. 

As soon as it is really cold, make ready a large boiler of 
scalding water. Lay the pig in cold water for fifteen min- 
utes ; then, holding it by the hind leg, plunge it into the 
boiling water, and shake it about violently until you can 
pull the hair off by the handful. Take it out, wipe it dry, 
and with a crash cloth or whisk broom rub the haii- off, 
brushing from the tail to the head, until the skin is per- 
fectly clean. Cut it open, take out the entrails, and wash 
very thoroughly with cold water, then with soda and water, 
to remove any unpleasant odor ; next with salt and water. 
Kinse with fair water and wij^e inside. Then wrap in a 
wet cloth, and keep this saturated with cold water until 
you are ready to stuff it. If these directions be followed 
implicitly, the pig will be fair and white, as if intrusted to 
a professional butcher. 

For stuffing, take a cupful of bread-crumbs, half a 
chopped onion, two teaspoonfuls powdered sage, three ta- 
blespoonfuls melted bvitter, a saltspoonful of pepper, half a 
gi'ated nutmeg, half a teaspoonful of salt, two well-beaten 
eggs. Mix all these ingi-edients, except the egg, together, 
incorporating them well ; moisten with half a cup of warm 



POKK. 133 

water (or milk), beat in the eggs, aud stiift' the pig into hia 
uatnral size and shape. Sew him xij?, and bend his fore- 
feet back'ft'ard, his hind-feet forward, under and close to the 
body, and skewering them into the proper position. Drj^ 
it well, and dredge with flour. Put it to roast with a little 
hoi water, slightly salted, in the dripping-pan. Baste with 
butter and water three times, as the pig gi-adually warms, 
afterward Avith the dripping. When it begins to smoke or 
steam, rub it over, every five minutes or so, with a cloth 
dipi^ed in melted butter. Do not omit this precaution if 
you would have the skin tender and soft after it begins to 
brown. A mojith-old pig will require about an hour and 
three quarters or two hours — sometimes longer — to roast, 
if the fire be brisk and steady. 

Should you or your guests dislike onion, prepare your 
stuffing without it. The following is a good receipt for 
rich and savory force-meat for a pig : — 

One cup of bread-crumbs, an ounce of suet, a bimch of 
parsley minced fine, teaspoonful of jiowdered sage, pej^per, 
salt, and nutmeg, a little thyme, half a glass Madeira or 
sherry, juice of a lemon, two tablespoonfuls melted butter, 
a cup of oyster-liquor, and two well-beaten eggs. For a 
Christmas pig, it is worth one's while to take the trouble 
to prepare this stuffing. 

If your pig is large, you can cut off his head and split 
liim down the back before sending to table. Do this with 
a sharp knife, and lay the backs together. But it is a 
pity ! I have before me now the vision of a pig I once 
saw served whole on the table of a friend, that forbids me 
ever to miitilate the innocent before the guests have a 
chance to feast their eyes upon the goodly picture. He 
was done to a turn — a rich, even brown, without a seam or 
crack from head to tail, and he knelt in a bed of deep- 
green parsley, alternately with bunches of whitish-green 



I3i COMMON SENSE, 

celery tops (the inner and tender leaves) ; a garland of tlie 
same was about his neck, and in his mouth was a tuft of 
white cauliflower, surrounded by a setting of cvirled pars- 
ley. Very simple, you see ; but I never beheld a more 
ornamental roast. 

Skim your gravy well ; add a little hot water, thicken 
with brown flour, boil up once, strain, and, when you have 
added half a glass of wine and half the juice of a lemon, 
serve in a tureen. 

In carving the pig, cut oft" the head fiirst ; then split 
down the back, take off hams and shoulders, and separate 
the I'ibs, Serve some of the dressing to each person. 

I have been thus minute in describing the preparation 
of this holiday dish, because it is erroneously considered a 
diflicult task. Any cook with a moderate degree of judg- 
ment and experience can undertake it with a reasonable 
expectation of success. 

PoKK Steaks, 

Those from the loin are best, but they can be cut from 
the neck, Kemove the skin and trim neatly. Season with 
pepper and salt, and broil over a clear fire. Some excel- 
lent housewives broil without seasoning, adding pepper, 
salt, a pinch of sage, another of minced onion, and a lump 
of butter after they are 2:»ut into the hot dish. Then cover 
closely and set in the oven for five minutes, \intil the aroma 
of the condiments flavors the meat. Try this method. 
You can cook spare-rib in the same manner. 

Pork Cnors. 

Remove the skin, trim them, and diji first in beaten 
egg, then in cracker-crumbs seasoned with salt, peppier, 
minced onion, and a little sage. Fry in hot lard or drip 
pings twenty or thii'ty minutes, turning often. The gravy 



POEK. 135 

of tliia disli is usually too rich or fat to accompany the 
meat. 

Pork cutlets are cooked in like manner. Send apple- 
sauce to the tabic with them, and season with tomato cat- 
sup. 

Stewed Pork. 

Take some tolerably lean slices from the leg, or bits 
left from trimming the various pieces into shape. Cut into 
dice an inch squai'e, put into a pot with enough cold water 
to cover them, and stew gently for three-qiiarters of an 
hour, closely covered. Meanwhile parboil half a dozen Irish 
potatoes, cut in thick slices, in another vessel. When the 
pork has stewed the allotted time, di-ain off the water 
from these and add to the meat. Season with pepper, salt, 
a minced shallot, a spoonful of pungent catsup, and a bunch 
of aromatic herbs. Cover again, and stew twenty minutes 
longer, or until the meat is tender throughout. 

If your meat be not too fat, this stew will be very good, 
especially on a cold day. 

You can stew cutlets in the same way. 

Pig's Head [Roasted). 

Take the head of a half-grown pig ; clean and split it, 
taking out the brains and setting these aside in a cool place. 
Parboil the head in salted Avater, drain off this, wipe the 
head dry, and wash all over with beaten egg ; dredge thickly 
with bread-crumbs, seasoned with pepper, sage, and onion, 
and roast, basting twice with butter and water ; then with 
the liquor in which the head was boiled ; at last v/ith the 
gravy that runs from the meat. Wash the brains in sev- 
eral waters until they are white ; beat to a smooth paste, 
add one-quarter part fine bread-crumbs, pepper, and salt ; 
make into balls, binding v/ith a beaten egg; roll in flour 
and fry in hot fat to a light brown. Arrange about the 



136 COMMON SENSE. 

head wlien it is dished. Skim the gravy left in the drip- 
ping-pan, thicken with brown flour, add the juice of a 
lemon, and boil up once. Pour it over the head. 

Pig's Head with Liver and Heart (Stewed). 

Clean and split the head, taking out the brains and set- 
. ting aside. Put the head in a pot with water enough to 
cover it and parboil it. Have ready another pot with the 
liver and heart, cut into inch-long pieces, stewed in just 
enough water to keep them from scorching. When the 
head is half done, add the entire contents of the second ves- 
sel to the first, and season with salt, pepper, a little onion, 
parsley, and sage. Cover and stew until the head is very 
tender, when take it out and lay in the middle of a flat dish. 
Witli a perforated skimmer remove the liver and heart and 
spread about the head, surrounding, but not covei'ing it. 
Strain the gravy and return to the pot, thicken with 
browned flour, sqvieeze in the juice of a lemon, and drop 
in carefully force-meat balls of the brains, prepared accord- 
ing to the foregoing receipt and fried a light brown. Boil 
once and pour about the head, arranging the balls upon it, 
to (Tover the split between the two sides of the head. 

You may improve this dish, which is very savory, by 
boiling a couple of pigs' feet with the head until the meat 
will slip from the bones. Take them from the liquor, cut 
ofi" and chop the meat, and put into the large pot when 
you add the liver, etc. 

Souse of Pigs' Ears and Feet. 

Clean the ears and feet well; cover them with cold 
water slightly salted, and boil until tender. Pack in stone 
jars while hot, and cover while you make ready the pickle. 
To half a gallon of good cider vinegar allow half a cuji of 
white sugar, three dozen whole black pepper, a dozen blades 



POEK. 137 

of mace, and a dozen cloves. Boil this one mimitc, taking 
care that it really boils, and pour while hot over the stiL 
Avarm feet and ears. It will be ready to use in two days, 
and will keep in a cool, dry place two months. 

If you wish it for breakfast, make a batter of one egg, 
one cup of milk, salt to taste and a teaspoonful of butter, 
with euougli flour for a thin muffin-batter ; dip each piece 
ill this, aud fry in hoi. lard or dripping. Or dip each in 
beaten egg, then in pounded cracker, before frying. 

Souse is also good eaten cold, especially the feet. 

Head-Ciieese {or Souse). 

This is made of the head, ears, and tongue. Boil them 
in salted water until very tender. Strip the meat from the 
bones and chop fine. Season with salt, pepper, sage, sweet 
marjoram, a little powdered cloves, and half a cup of strong 
vinegar. Mix all together thorouglily, taste to see that it 
is flavored sufficiently, remembering that the spice tends to 
keep it, and pack hard in moulds or bowls, interspersing the 
layers with bits of the tongue cut in oblongs, squares, and 
triangles not less than an inch in length. Press down and 
keep the meat in shaj^e by putting a plate on the top of each 
mould (first wetting the plate) and a weight upon this. In 
two days the cheese Avill be ready for use. Turn out from 
the shapes as you wish to use it ; or, should you desire to 
keep it several weeks, take the cheese from the moulds and 
immerse in cold vinegar in stone jars. This will preserve 
it admirably, and yon have only to pare awaj the outside, 
should it be too acid for your taste. 

This is generally eaten cold for tea, with vinegar and 
mustard; but it is very nice cut in slices, seasoned slightly 
with mustard, and warmed in a frying-pan with enough but- 
ter to prevent burning. Or, you may dip in beateu eggj 
then cracker-crumbs, and fry for breakfast. 



133 COMMON SENSE. 

If the tongue is arranged judiciously, tlie slices will be 
prettily marbled. 

Pork Pot-pie. 

You can make tliis of lean pork cut from any part of 
tbe pig, but the chine is best. Crack the bones well, and 
cut up the chine into rihlettes two inches long. Line your 
pot, which should be round at the bottom and well greased, 
with a good light paste ; put in the meat, then a layer of 
parboiled potatoes, split in half, seasoning with pepper and 
salt as you go on. When the pot is nearly full, pour in a 
quart of cold water and put on the upper crust, cutting a 
small round hole out of the middle, through which you can 
add hot water should the gravy boil away too fast. Slips 
of paste may also be strewed among the meat and potatoes. 
Put on the pot-lid, and boil from one hour and a half to 
two hours. When done, remove the upper crust carefully, 
turn out the meat and gravy into a bowl, that you may 
get at the lower. Lay this upon a hot dish, put the meat, 
etc., in order upon it, pour the gravy over it, and cover with 
the top crust. • This can be browned with a red-hot shovel, 
or oven-lid. 

Cheshire Pork-pie. 

Cut two or three pounds of lean fresh pork into strips 
as long and as wide as your middle finger. Line a buttered 
dish with puff-paste ; put in a layer of pork seasoned with 
pepper, salt, and nutmeg or mace ; next a layer of juicy ap- 
ples, sliced and covered with about an ounce of white sugar ; 
then more pork, and so on until you are ready for the paste 
cover, when poiu- in half a pint of sweet cider or wine, and 
stick bits of butter all over the top. Cover with a thick 
lid of puff-paste, cut a slit in the top, brush over with 
beaten egg, and bake an hour and a half. 

This is an English dish, and is famous in the region from 



POKE. l^'O 

whicli it takes its name. It is mucli liked by those avIio 
Jiave tried it, aud is considered by some to be equal to our 
mince-pie. 

Yorkshire pork-pie is made in the same way, with the 
omission of the apples, sugar, and nutmeg, and the addition 
of sage to the seasoning. 

Sausage (iVb. 1). 

6 lbs. lean fresh pork. 
3 " fat " " 
12 teaspoonfuls powdered sage. 
6 " black pepper. 

6 « salt. 

2 teaspoonfuls powdered mace. 
2 « " cloves. 

1 grated nutmeg. 

Grind the meat, fat and lean, in a sausage-mill, or chop 
it very fine. The mill is better, and the grinding does not 
occupy one-tenth of the time that chopping does, to say 
nothing of the labor. One can be bought for thi-ee or four 
dollars, and will well repay the purchaser. Mix the sea- 
soning in with your hands, taste, to be sure all is right, and 
pack down in stone jai's, pouring melted lard on top. An- 
other good way of preserving them is, to make long narrow 
bags of stout muslin, large enough to contain, each, enough 
sausage for a family dish. Fill these with the meat, dip in 
melted lard, and hang from the beams of the cellar. 

If yon wish to pack in the intestines of the hog, they 
shoulc? ue carefully prepared as follows : Empty them, cut 
them in lengths, and lay for two days in salt and water. 
Turn them inside out, and lay in soak one day longer. Scrape 
them, rinse well in soda and water, wipe, and blow into one 
end, having tied up the other with a bit of twine. If they 



14:0 COMMON SENSE. 

are whole and clear, stuff with the meat ; tie up and hang 
iia the store-room or cellar. 

These are fried in the cases, in a clean, dry fi-ying-jian 
until bi'own. If you have the sausage-meat in bulk, make 
into small, round flat cakes, and fry in the same way. Some 
dip in egg and pounded cracker — others roll in flour before 
cooking. Their own fat will cook them. Send to table 
diy and hot, but do not let them fry hard. When one side 
is done, turn the other. The fire should be very brisk. 
Ten minutes, or twelve at the outside, is long enough to 
cook them. 

Sausage {ISFo. 2). 

4 lbs. pork, lean. 
1|- " " fat. 

10 teaspoonfids sage. 

5 " pepper. 
5 " salt. 

Grind and season as directed in No. 1. 
This will not keep so long as that made according to the 
former receipt, but is very good for immediate family use. 

Sausage {N'o. 3). 

2 lbs. lean pork. 
' 2 " '' veal. 

2 « beef suet. 
Peel of half a lemon. 
1 grated nutmeg. 

1 teaspoonful black pepper. 
1 " cayenne. 

6 teaspoonfuls salt. 

3 " sweet marjoram and 
thyme mixed. 



POKK. lill 

2 teaspoonfuls of sage. 
Juice of a lemon. 
Stuff in cases. This is very fine. 

Bologna Sausage ( Uncoohed). 

6 lbs. lean jioi-k. 

3 " *' beef. 

2 " beef suet. 

4 ounces salt. 

6 tablespoonfuls black pepper. 

3 " cayenne. 

2 teaspoonfuls powdered cloves. 

1 " allspice. 

One minced onion, very finely 
chopped. 
Chop or grind the meat, and mix the seasoning well 
through it. Pack it in beef-skins (or entrails) prepared aa 
you do those of })ork. In the city, you can have these 
cleaned by your butcher, or get them ready for use from a 
pork merchant. Tie both ends tightly, and lay them in 
brine strong enough to bear ixp an egg. Let them be in 
this for a week ; change the brine, and let them i-emain in 
tliis a week longer. Turn them over every day of the fort- 
night. Then take them out, wipe them, and send them to 
be smoked, if yon*have no smoke-house of your own. When 
well smoked, rub them over with sweet oil or fresh butter, 
and hang them in a cool, dark place. 

Bologna sausage is sometimes eaten raw, but the di-ead 
of the fatal trichince should j)\it an end to this practice, did 
not common sense teach us that it must be unwholesome, 
no less than disgusting. Cut in round, thick slices, and 
toast on a gridiron, or fiy in their own fat. If you mean 
to keep it some time, rub over the skins -with pepper to 
keep away insects. 



] i 2 COMMON SENSE. 

Bologna Sausage {Cooked). 

2 lbs. lean beef. 
2 " " veal. 
2 " " pork. 
2 " fat salt pork — not smoked. 

1 lb. beef suet. 

10 teaspoonfuls powdered sage. 
4 lbs. marjoram, parsley, savory, and thyme — mixed. 

2 teaspoonfuls cayenne pepper, and the same of 
black. 

1 grated nutmeg. 

1 teaspoonful cloves. 

1 minced onion. 

Salt to taste. 
Chop or grind the meat and suet ; season, and stuff into 
beef-skins ; tie these up ; prick each in several places to al- 
low the escape of the steam; put into hot — not boiling 
•water, and heat gradually to the boiling-point. Cook slowly 
for one hour ; take out the skins and lay them to dry in the 
sun, upon clean, sweet straw or hay. Hub the outside of 
the skins with oil or melted butter, and hang in a cool, dry 
cellar. If you mean to keep it more than a week, rub pep- 
per or powdered ginger upon the outside. You can wash 
it off before sending to table. This is eaten without further 
cooking. Cut in rovmd slices, and lay sliced lemon around 
the edge of the dish, as many like to squeeze a few drops 
upon the sausage before eating. 

Lard. 

Every housekeeper knows how unfit for really nico 
cooking is the pressed lard sold in stores as the " best and 
cheapest." It is close and toiigh, melts slowly, and is some- 
times diversified by fibrous lumps. And ever when lard 



POEK. 143 

has been " tried out " by the usual pi-ocess, it is often mixed 
with so much water as to remind vis unpleasantly that it 
is boxight by weight. 

The best way of preparing the " leaf lard," as it is called, 
is to skin it carefully, wash, and let it drain ; then put it, 
cut into bits, into a large, clean tin kettle or bucket, and 
set this in a pot of boiling water. Stir from time to time 
until it is melted ; throw in a very little salt, to make the 
sediment settle ; and when it is hot — (it should not boil fast 
at any time, but simmer gently until clear) — strain through 
a coarse cloth into jars. Do not squeeze the cloth so long 
as the clear fat will run througli, and when you do, press 
the refuse into a different vessel, to be used for commoner 
piirposes than the other. 

Most of the lard in general use is, however, made from 
the fatty portions of pork lying next the skin of the hog, 
and are left for this purpose by the butcher. Scrape from 
the rind, and cut all into dice. Fill a large pot, putting in 
a teacupful of water to prevent scorching, and melt very 
slowly, stirring every few minutes. Simmer until there 
remains nothing of the meat but fibrous bits. Remove 
these carefully with a perforated skimmer ; throw in a little 
salt, to settle the fat, and when it is clear, strain through a 
£ne cullender, a sieve, or a coarse cloth. Dip the latter in 
boiling water, should it become clogged by the cooling lard. 
Observe the directions about sqiieezing the strainer. If 
yovar family is small, bear in mind that lard keeps longer in 
small than large vessels. Set away the jars, closely covered, 
in a cool, dry cellar or store-room. 

In trying out lard, the chief danger is of burning. Sim- 
mer gently over a steady fire, and give it your whole atten- 
tion until it is done. A moment's neglect will ruin all. 
Stir very often — almost constantly at the last — and from 
tho bottom, until the salt is thrown in to settle it, when 



144 COMMON SENSTH- 

witlidraw to a less hot part of the fire. Bladders tied over 
lard jars are the best protection ; next to these, papei-, and 
outside of this, cloths dipped in melted grease. 

Brawk (No. 1.) 

Pig's head weighing 6 lbs. 

1 lb. lean beef. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

^ teaspoonful pepper (black or Avhite). 

^ teaspoonful cayenne pepper. 

^ teaspoonful mace. 

A pinch of cloves. 

A small onion minced very fine. 

Clean and wash the head, and stew with the beef in 
enough cold water to cover. When the bones will sliji out 
easily, remove them, after draining off the liquor. Chop 
the meat finely while it is hot, season, and pour all into a 
mould, wet inside with cold water. If you can have a tin 
mould made in the shape of a boar's head, your brawn will 
look well at a Christmas feast. 

Brawn (Ko, 2). 

Pig's head, feet, and ears. 

■|- teaspoonful of black pepper, and same of cayenne. 

4 teaspoonfuls powdered sage. 

1 teaspoonful mace. 

An onion miiiced. 

Salt and saltpetre. 

Soak the head twelve hours, and lay in a strong brine, 
with a tablespoonfvil of saltpetre. Let it lie three days- in 
this; rinse ; then boil it until you can draw out the bones. 
Do this very carefully from the back and uiuler-side of the 
head, breaking the outline of the top as little as possilila. 



PORK. 145 

Chop the meat of the feet and ears, which should have been 
boiled with the head, season to taste with the spices I have 
indicated (tastes vary in these mattters), beat in the brains, 
or two tablespoonfuis of melted butter. Fill up the hollows 
left by the removal of the bones with this mixture. Tie in 
a flannel cloth, sewing this tightly into the shape of the 
head ; boil an hoxir and a quarter, and set aside to drain 
and cool. Do not remove the cloth until next day. This 
will be found veiy nice. 

Saveloys. 
8 lbs. pork. 

4 teaspoonfuls black pepper. 
1 teaspoonful cayenne. 
1 " cloves or mace. 

8 teaspoonfuls sage, sweet marjoram, and thyme, 

mixed. 
1 teacupful bread-crumbs. 

Lay the meat, which should be young pork, in a brine of 
salt and water, with a tablespoonful of saltpetre, and leave 
it for thi'ee days. Di'y and mince it, season, and add the 
grated bi-ead. Stuff in skins, and bake, closely covered, in 
an oven for half an hour. Or, what is better, steam over 
boiling water one hour. 

Eat either hot or cold. 

To Pickle Pork. (No. 1.) 

Hams, shoulders, chines, and " middlings," are the parts 
of the hog which are usually pickled. This should be done 
as soon as may be after the meat is fairly cold — especially 
in moderate weather. Wlien you can pack down pork 
twenty-four hours after butchering, it is best to do so, un- 
less the cokl be severe enough to preserve it longer. 
7 



116 COMMON SENSE. 

4|- lbs. salt. 

1 lb. brown sugar, 

1 oz, saltpetre in 3 gallons of water. 

Put into a large saucepan and boil for half an hour, 
skimming off the scum. When cold, pour over the meat, 
and let it Lie for a few days. 

This is intended to corn a small quantity of meat for 
family use. 

(No. 2.) 
80 lbs. of meat. 

2 quarts and 1 pint of fine salt. 

4 lbs. sugar, or 1 quart best molasses. 

3 oz. saltpetre. 

Pulverize and mix the seasoning, with the exception of 
the two qiiarts of salt, using the one pint only. Rub the 
meat well all over, and lay upon boards on the cellar-floor 
for twenty-four hours. Then, piit a few clean stones 
in the bottom of a barrel ; lay sticks across these, that the 
meat may not soak in the liquor that drains from it. Pack 
the meat in layers, strewing between these the remaining 
two quarts of salt. Let it lie in the cask for fifteen or six- 
teen days, every day during this time tipping the cask to 
drain off the liquor, or drawing it through a'bung-hole near 
the bottom. Pour this back in cupfuls over the meat. 

If yoii do not mean to smoke the meat, take it out at 
the end of the fortnight, rub each piece well over with dry 
salt, and return to the barrel. If the liquor does not cover 
it, make fresh brine in the proportion of two pounds of salt, 
a quarter of an ounce of saltpetre, and a quart of water, and 
pour in when you have boiled it half an hour and let it cool. 
Lay a round piece of board upon the Tipper layer and keep 
this down with stones. Examine from time to time, to be 
sure the meat is keeping well. Should it seem likely to 



POKK. 147 

taint, throw away the pickle, rub each piece ovei* ^ith dry 
salt, and pack anew. Pork jiickled in this way will keejj 
two years. 

To Cure Hams. 

Having pickled your haras with the rest of your pork, 
as just du'ected, take them, after the lapse of sixteen days, 
from the packing barrel, with the shoulders and jowls. At 
the South they empty the cask, and consign the " whole 
hog " to the smoke-house. Wash off the' pickle, and, while 
wet, dip in bran. Some use saw-dust, but it is not so good 
Others use neither, only wipe the meat dry and smoke. 
The object in dipping in bran or saw-dust is to form a crust 
which prevents the evaporation of the juices. Bo sure that 
it is well covered with the bran, then hang in the smoke, 
the hock end downward. Keep up a good smoke, by hav- 
ing the fire partially smothered with hickory chips and saw 
dust, for four weeks, taking care the house does not be 
come hot. Take down the meat, brush off the bran, exam 
ine closely, and if you suspect insects, lay it in the hot sun 
for a day or two. 

The various ways of keeping hams — each stronglj 
recommended by those who have practised it — are too nu- 
merous to mention here. Some pack in wood ashes ; oth- 
ers, in dry oats ; others, in bran. But the best authorities 
discard packing altogether. I will name one or two meth- 
ods which I know have been successful. " I hang mine on 
hooks from wires, at the top of my gi-anary, which is tight 
and dark," says an excellent judge and manufacturer of 
hams. " They are good and sweet when a year old." An- 
other admirable housekeeper covers with brown paper, 
then with coarse muslin stitched tightly and fitting close- 
ly, then whitewashes. But for the paper, the lime would 
be apt to eat away the gi-ease. Still another covers with 



148 COMMON SENSE. 

muslin, and coats with a mixture of bees-"wax and rosiu 
There is no doubt that the covers are an excellent precau 
tion — provided always, that the insects have not already 
deposited their eggs in the meat. The bran coating tends 
to prevent this. 

I have eaten ham twenty years old in Virginia, which 
had been kept sweet in slaked ashes. Unslaked will act 
like lime upon the fat. 

Boiled Ham. 

Soak in water over night. Next morning wash hard 
with a coarse cloth or stiff brush, and put on to boil with 
plenty of cold water. Allow a quarter of an hour to each 
pound in cooking, and do not boil too fast. Do not remove 
the skin until cold ; it will come off easily and cleanly 
then, and the juices are better preserved than when it is 
stripped hot. Send to table with dots of pepper or dry 
mustard on the top, a tuft of fringed paper twisted about 
the shank, and garnish with parsley. 

Cut very thin in carving. 

Glazed Ham. «^ 

Brush the ham — a cold boiled one, from which the 
skin has been taken — well, all over with beaten egg. To 
a cup of powdered cracker allow enough rich milk or 
cream to make into a thick paste, salt, and work in a tea- 
spoonful of melted butter. Spread this evenly a quai-ter 
of an inch thick over the ham, and set to brown in a mod- 
erate oven: 

Steamed Ham. 

This is by far the best way of cooking a ham. Lay in 
cold water for twelve hovirs ; wash very thoroughly, r\xb- 
bing with a stiff brush, to dislodge the salt and smoke on 



POEK. 149 

the outside. Put into a steamer, cover closely, and set it 
over a pot of boiling water. Allow at least twenty min- 
utes to a pound. Keep the water at a hard boil. 

If you serve ham hot, skin, and immediately strew 
thickly with cracker or bread-crumbs, to prevent the wasta 
of the essence. Put a frill of paper about the knuckle. 

Send around cabbage or other green vegetables with it. 

Bakeb Ham. 

Soak for twelve hours. Trim away the rusty part from 
the under side and edges, wipe very dry, cover the bottom 
with a paste made of Hour and hot water, and lay it upside 
down in the dripping-pan, with enough water to keep it 
fi-om burning. Bake five hours, or allow fully twenty-five 
minutes to a pound. Baste now and then, to prevent the 
crust from cracking and scaling olF. When done, peel off 
this and the skin, and glaze as you would a cold ham. 

Put cut paper about the knuckle, and garnish with 
parsley and sliced red beet — pickled. 

Roast Ham. 

Soak for two days in lukewarm water, changing at least 
six times a day. Take it out, wash very well, scrubbing 
the under part hard, and trimming away the black and 
rusty edges. Skin with care, lest you mangle the meat 
and spoil tlie sj^mmetry of the shape. Lay in a dish and 
sponge with a cloth dipped in a mixture of wine, vine- 
gar, sugar, and mustard — about a tablespoonful of wliite 
sugar, a saltspoonful of made mustard, and a glass of wine 
to half a gill of vinegar. Do this at intervals of an hour, 
washing every part of the ham well, all day and until bed- 
time. Renew the process next morning until six hours be 
fore you need the meat. Put it upon the spit or in tha 



150 COMMON BENSE. 

dripping-pan, with, a cup of hot water to pi-event burning, 
Add to the mixture — or what is left of it in the dish — a 
cupful of boiling water. Keep this on the stove and baste 
continually with it until the liquor flows freely from the 
ham as it cooks ; then substitute the gravy. When done 
(you must test with a fork), cover with cracker-crumbs^ 
worked to a paste with milk, butter, and a beaten egg, and 
return to the oven to brown. 

Skim the gravy ; add a glass of good wine, a tablespoon- 
ful of catsup, — walnut, if you have it, — the juice of a lemon, 
«,nd a little nutmeg. Boil vip, and send to table in a 
boat. 

Troublesome as the mode of cooking it may seem, roast 
ham is so delicious — especially when cold — as fully to 
recortipense the housekeeper who may be tempted to try it. 

Broiled Ham. 

Cut in slices. Wash well, and soak in scalding water 
in a covered vessel for half an hour. Pour ofl" the water 
and add more boiling watei'. Wipe diy when the ham has 
stood half an hour in the second watei-, and lay in cold for 
five minutes. Wijje again and broil over (or under) a 
clear fire. 

Cold boiled ham, that is not too much done, is better 
for broiling than raw. Pepper before serving. 

Barbecued Ham. i^ 

If your ham is raw, soak as above directed ; then lay 
the slices flat in a frying-pan ; pepper each and lay upon it 
a quarter of a teaspoonful of made mustard. Pour about 
them some vinegar, allowing half a teaspoonful to each 
slice. Pry quickly and turn often. When done to a fine 
brown, transfer to a hot dish ; add to the gravy in the pan 



POEK. 1 5 1 

half a glass of wine and a very small teaspoonful of wLitt 
sugar. Boil up and pour over the meat. 
Undei'done ham is nice barbecued. 

Fkied Ham. 

If raw, soak as for broiling. Cook in a hot frying-pai; 
turning often until done. Serve with or without the gravy 
as you please. In some parts of the country it is custom- 
ary to take the meat first from the pan, and add to tho 
gi'avy a little cream, then thicken with flour. Boil up 
once and pour over the ham. A little chopped parsley ia 
a pleasant addition to this gravy. 

Or, 

You may dip some slices of cold boiled ham — cut rather 
thick — in beaten egg, then in cracker-crumbs, and fiy them 
in fat extracted from some bits of salt pork. Take the dry 
fried pork from the pan before putting in the ham. Gai'- 
uish Avith crisped parsley. 

Ham Sandwiches. 

Cut some slices of bread in a neat shape, and trim off 
the crust, unless it is very tender. Butter them and lay 
between every two some thin slices of cold boiled ham. 
Spread the meat with a little mustard if you like. 

Ground ham makes deKcious sandwiches. Cut the 
bread very thin, and butter well. Put in a good layer of 
ham, and press the two sides of the sandwiches firmly, but 
gently, together. Then roll lengthwise, and pile in a plate 
or basket. 

Ham and Chicken S.vndwiches. 

Mince some cold roast chicken, and a like quantity of 
cold boiled han;. Put the mixture into a saucepan, Avitb 



152 COMMON SENSE. 

enough gravy — cliicken or veal — to make a soft paste. If you 
have no gravy, use a little hot water, a few spoonfuls of 
cream, and a fair lump of butter. Season with pepper to 
your taste. Stir while it heats almost to boiling, working 
it very smooth. In about five minutes after it begins to 
smoke, take from the fire and spread in a dish to cool. 
With a good-sized cake-cutter, or a plain thin-edged tum- 
bler, cut some rounds of cold bread, and butter one side of 
each. Sprinkle the buttered sides with grated cheese, and, 
when the chicken is cold, put a layer between these. 
These sandwiches are simple and very good. 

Ham and Chicken Pie. 

Cut up and parboil a tender young chicken — a year old 
one is best. Line a deep dish with a good pie-crust. Cut 
some thin slices of cold boiled ham, and spread a layer next 
the crust ; then airange pieces of the fowl upon the ham. 
Cover this, in turn, with slices of hard-boiled eggs, buttered 
and j)e2jpex'ed. Proceed in this order until your materials 
are used up. Then pour in enough veal or chicken gravy 
to prevent dryness. Unless you have put in too much 
water for the size of the fowl, the liquor in which the 
chicken was boiled is best for this purpose. Bake one hour 
and a quarter for a large pie. 

Ham and Eggs. 

Cut your slices of ham of a uniform size and shape. 
Fry quickly, and take them out of the pan as soon as they 
are done. Have the eggs ready, and drop them, one at a 
time, in the hissing fat. Have a large pan for this purpose, 
that they may not touch and run together. In three min- 
utes they will be done. The meat should be kept hot, and 
when the eggs are ready, lay one upon each slice of ham, 



POKK. 153 

which should have been cut the proper sLze for this. Da 
not use the gravy. 

Pork and Beans. 

Parboil a piece of the middling of salt pork, and score 
the skill. Allow a pound to a quart of dried beans, which 
must be soaked over night in lukewarm water. Change 
this twice for more and warmer water, and in the morning 
put them on to boil in cold. When they are soft, drain 
off the liquor, put the beans in a deep dish, and half-bury 
the pork in the middle, adding a very little warm water. 
Bake a nice brown. 

This is a favorite dish vnth. New England farmers and 
many others. Although old-fashioned, it still makes its 
weekly appearance upon the tables of hundreds of well-to- 
do families. 

Pork and Peas Pudding. 

Soak the pork, which should not be a fat piece, over 
night in cold water ; and in another pan a quart of dried 
sjilit peas. In the morning put on the peas to boil slowly 
until tender. Drain and rub through a cullender ; season 
with pepper and salt, and mix with them two tablespoon- 
fuls of butter and two beaten eggs. Beat all well together. 
Have ready a floured pudding-cloth, and put the pudding 
into it. Tie it up, leaving room for swelling ; put on in 
warm, not hot water, with the pork, and boil them together 
an hour. Lay the pork in the centre of the dish, turn out 
the pudding, slice and arrange about the meat. 
7* 



15i COMMON SENSE. 



® m ir » tt y . 

Laying to youi* conduct the line and plummet of tha 
Golden Kule, never pay a visit (I use the word in contra- 
distinction to " call ") withovit notifying your hostess-elect 
of your intention thus to favor her. 

Perhaps once in ten thousand times, your friend — be 
she mother, sister, or intimate acquaintance — may be en- 
raptured at your unexpected appearance, travelling-satchel 
in hand, at her door, to pass a day, a night, or a month ; or 
may be pleasantly surprised when you take the baby, and 
run in to tea in a social way. But the chances are so greatly 
in favor of the jirobability that you will upset her house- 
hold arrangements, abrade her temper, or put her to undue 
trouble or embarrassment, by this evidence of your wish to 
have her feel quite easy with you, to treat you as one of 
the family, that it is hardly worth your while to risk so 
much in order to gain so little. 

Mrs. Partington has said more silly things than any 
other woman of her age in this country ; but she sjjoke 
wisely in declaring her preference for those surprise-parties 
"when people sent word they wei'e coming." Do not be 
ashamed to say to your nearest of kin, or the confidante of 
your school-days — " Always let me know when to look for 
you, that I may so order my time and engagements as to 
secure the greatest possible pleasure from your visit." If 
you are the v\^omau I take you to be- — methodical, indus- 
trious, and ruling your household according to just and 
firm laws of order and punctuality, yovi need this notice. 
If you are likovise social and hospitable, your rules are 
made with reference to jiossible and desirable interruptions 
of this nature. It only requires a little closer packing of 
certain duties, an easy exchange of times and seasons, and 



COMPANY. 1 55 

leisure is obtained for tlie riglifc enjojonent of joxir fiieud'a 
society. The additional place is set at table ; your spare 
bed, which yesterday was tossed into a heap that both mat- 
tresses might be aired, and covered lightly with a thin 
spread, is made up with fresh sheets that have not gath- 
ered damp and must from lying packed beneath blankets 
and coverlets for may be a month, for fear somebody might 
happen in to pass the night, and catch you with the bed in 
disorder. Towels and water are ready ; the room is bright 
and dustless ; the dainty dish so far prepared for dinner or 
tea as to be like Mrs. Bagnet's greens, " off your mind ; " 
J ohn knows whom he is to see at his home-coming ; the 
children are clean, and on the qui vive — children's instincts 
are always hospitable. The guest's welcome is half given in 
the air of the house and the family group before you have 
time to utter a word. It may have appeared to her a use- 
less formality to despatch the note or telegi'am you insisted 
upon. She knows you love her, and she would be wounded 
by the thought that she could ever " come amiss " to your 
home. Perhaps, as she lays aside her travelling-dress, she 
smiles at your " ceremonious, old-maidish ways," and mar- 
vels that so good a manager should deem such forms neces- 
sary with an old friend. 

If she had driven to your house at nightfall, to discover 
that you had gone with husband and children to pass sev- 
eral days witli John's mother, in a town fifty miles away, 
and tliat the servants were out " a-pleasuring " in the mis- 
tress' absence ; if she Jiad found you at home, nursing three 
children through the measles, she having brought her 
youngest with her ; if you were yourself the invalid, bound 
hand and foot to a Procrustean couch, and utterly unable 
even to see her — John, meanwhile, being incapacitated from 
playing the ])art of agreeable host by worry and anxiety ; 
if, on the day before her arrival, your chambermaid had 



156 COMMON SENSE. 

gone off in a " tiff," leaving you to do her work and to 
nurse your cook, sick in the third story ; if earlier comera 
than herself had filled every spare mattress in the house ; — 
if any one of these, or a dozen other ills to which house- 
keepers are heirs, had impressed upon her the idea that her 
visit was inopportune, she might think better of your 
*' punctilio." 

But since unlooked-for visitors will occasionally drop 
in upon the best-regulated families, make it your study to 
receive them gracefully and cordially. If they care enough 
for you to turn aside from their regular route to tarry a 
day, or night, or week with you, it would be churlish not 
to show appreciation of the favor in which you are held. 
Make them welcome to the best you can offer at so short a 
notice, and let no preoccupied air or troubled smile bear 
token to your perturbation — if you are perturbed. If you 
respect yourself and your husband, the appointments of 
your table will never put you to the bhish. John, wlio 
buys the silver, glass, china, and napery, is entitled to the 
every-day use of the best. You may have — I hope this is 
so — a holiday set of each, put away beyond the reach of 
hourly accidents ; but if this is fit for the use of a lord, 
do not make John eat three hundred and sixty days in the 
year from such ware as would suit a ditcher's cottage. If 
your children never see bright silver unless when " there 
is company," you cannot wonder, although you will be 
mortified, at their making looking-glasses of the bowls of 
the spoons, and handling the forks awkwardly. Early im- 
press upon them that what is nice enough for Papa, is nice 
enoiigh for the President. I have noticed that where there 
is a wide difference between family and company table fur- 
nitui-e, there usually exists a coi'responding disparity be- 
tween every-day and company manners. 

Especially, let your welcome be ready and hearty when 



COMPANY. 157 

youi" husband brings home an unexpected guest. Take 
care he understands clearly that this is his prerogative ; 
that the rules by which you would govern the visits of 
your own sex ai'e not applicable to his. Men rarely set 
seasons for their visits. They snatch an hour or two with 
an old chum or new friend out of the hurry of business- 
life, as one stoops to pluck a stray violet from a dusty 
oadside. John must take his chances when he can get 
them. If he can walk home, arm in arm, with the school- 
fellow he has not seen before in ten years, not only fear- 
lessly, but gladly, anticipatory of your jileasure at the 
sight of his ; if, when the stranger is presented to you, you 
receive him as your friend because he is your husband's, and 
seat him to a family dinner, plain, but nicely served, and 
eaten in cheerfulness of heart ; if the children are well- 
behaved, and your attire that of a lady who has not lost 
the desire to look her best in her husband's eyes — you have 
added to the links of steel that knit your husband's heart 
to you ; increased his affectionate admiration for the best 
little woman in the woi'ld. Many a man has been driven 
to entertain his friends at hotels and club-rooms, because 
he dared not take them home without permission from the 
presiding officer of his household. The majority of healthy 
men have good appetites, and are not disposed to be crit- 
ical of an luipretending bill of fare. The chance guest of 
this sex is generally an agreeable addition to the family 
gi'oup, instead of de troj) — always supposing him to be 
John's friend. 

As to party and dinner-giving, your safest rule is to 
obey the usage of the community in which you live in 
minor points, letting common sense and your means guide 
you in essentials. Be chary of \indertaking what you can- 
not carry through successfully. Pretention is the ruin of 
more entertainments than ignorance or lack of money. If 



168 COIMMON SENSE, 

you know liow to give a large evening party (and think it 
a pleasant and remunerative investment of time and sev 
eral hundred dollars) — if you understand the machinery 
of a handsome dinner-party, and can afford these lux- 
uries, go forward bravely to success. But creep before you 
walk. Study established customs in the best managed 
houses you visit ; take counsel with experienced friends ; 
now and then make modest essays on yotir own responsi- 
bility, and, insensibly, these crumbs of wisdom will form 
into a comely loaf. There is no surer de-appetizer — to coin 
a word — to guests than a heated, over-fatigued, anxious 
hostess, who betrays her inexperience by nervous glances, 
abstraction in conversation, and, worst of all, by ajDologies. 
A few general observations are all I purpose to offer as 
hints of a foundation upon which to build your plans for 
" company-giving." Have an abundance of clean plates, 
silver, knives, &c,, laid in order in a convenient place, — 
such as an ante-room, or dining-i'oom pantry, — those de- 
signed for each course, if your entertainment is a dinner, 
upon a shelf or stand by themselves, and make your wait- 
ers understand distinctly in advance in what order these 
are to be brought on. 

Soup shovild be sent up accompanied only by bread, and 
such sauce as may be fashionable or suitable. Before din- 
ner is served, however, snatch a moment, if possible, to 
inspect the table in person, or instruct a trustworthy fac- 
totum to see that everything is in place, the water in the 
goblets, a slice of bread laid upon a folded napkin at each 
plate, &c. Unless you have trained, professional waiters, 
this is a wise precaution. If it is a gentleman's dinner, 
you can see to it for yourself, since yo\i will not be obliged 
to appear in the parlor until a few minutes before they are 
summoned to the dining-room. If there are ladies in the 
:;omj)any, you mtist not leave them. 



COMPANY. loG 

To return, then, to our souj) : Tt is not customary tc 
offer a second plateful to a guest. When the table is 
cleared, the fish should come in, with potatoes — no othei 
vegetable, unless it be a salad or stewed tomatoes. Fish ia 
usually attended by pickles and sauces. After a thorough 
change of plates, &c., come the substantials. Game and 
other meats are often set on together, unless the dinner is 
a very protracted and formal one. Various vegetables ai'e 
passed to each when he has been helped to meat. If wine 
be used, it is introduced after the fish. Pastry is the first 
relay of dessert, and puddings may be served from the 
other end of the table. Next appear creams, jellies, char- 
lotte-russes, cakes, and the like ; then fruit and nuts ; lastly 
coffee, often accompanied with crackers and cheese. Wine, 
of course, goes around duiing the dessert — if it flows at all. 

Evening parties are less troublesome to a housekeeper, 
because less ceremonious than dinners. If you can afford 
it, the easiest way to give a large one is to put the whole 
business into the hands of the profession, by intrusting 
your order, not only for supper, but waiters and china, to a 
competent confectioner. But a social standing supper of 
oysters, cliicken-salad, sandwiches, cofiee, ice-cream, jeHies, 
and cake, is not a formidable undertaking when you have 
had a little practice, especially if your own, or John's 
mother, or the nice, neighborly matron over the way will 
assist you by her advice and presence. 

We make this matter of company too hard a business 
in America ; are too apt to treat our friends as the Stras- 
burgers do their geese ; shut them up in overheated qiiar- 
ters, and stuff them to repletion. Our rooms would be 
better for more air, our guests happier had they more 
liberty, and our hostess would be prettier and more spright- 
ly were she not overworked before the arrivals begin, and 
full of trepidation after they come,^-a woman cumbered 



160 COMilON SENSE. 

with, many tliotiglits of serving, while she is supposed to bs 
enjoying the society of her chosen associates. It is so well 
understood that company is a weariness, that inquiries as to 
how the principal agent in bringing about an assembly has 
*' borne it," have passed into a custom. The tender sym- 
pathies manifested in such queries, the martyr-like air with 
which they are answered, cannot fail to bring to the satiri- 
cal mind the Chinaman's comment upon the British officers' 
dancing on ship-board in warm weather, 

" Why you no make your servants do so hard work^ 
and you look at dem ? " 

We pervert the very name and meaning of hospitality 
when we pinch our families, wear away our patience, and 
waste away our nervous forces with our husbands' money, 
in getting up to order expensive entertainments for com- 
pai'ative strangers, whose utmost acknowledgment of our 
efforts in their behalf will consist in an invitation, a year 
hence it may be, to a party constructed on the same plan, 
managed a little better or a little worse than ours. This 
is not hospitality without grudging, but a vulgar system of 
barter and gluttony more worthy of Abyssinians than 
Christian gentlefolk. 



VENISOK 



I ONCE received a letter from the wife of an Eastern 
man who had removed to the Great West, in which bitter 
complaints were made of the scarcity of certain comforts — 
ice-cream and candy among them — to which she had been 
accustomed in other days. " My husband shot a fine deer 
this morning," she wi-ote, " but I never could endure ven- 
zon. Can you tell me of any way of cooking it so as to 



VENISON. 161 

make it tolerably eatible ? " I did not think it very singu- 
lar that one Avhose chief craving in i he goodly land in whicb 
she had found a home was for cocoanut cakes and choco- 
late caramels, should not like the viand the name of which 
she could not spell. Nor did 1 wonder that she failed to 
make it " eatible," or doubt that her cooking matched her 
orthography. But I am amazed ofteu at hearing really 
skilful housewives pronounce it an undesirable dish. In 
the hope of in some measure correcting this imjiression 
among Eastern cooks, who, it must be allowed, rarely taste 
really fresh venison, I have written out, with great care and 
particularity, the following receipts, most of which I have 
used in my own family with success and satisfaction. 

The dark color of the meat, — I mean now not the black, 
but rich reddish- brown flesh, — so objectionable to the unin- 
itiated, is to the gourmand one of its chief recommendations 
to his favor. It should also be fine of grain and well 
coated with fat. 

Keep it hung up in a cool, dark cellar, covered with a 
cloth, and use as soon as you can conveniently. 

Haunch of Yenisox. sJ« 

If the outside be hard, wash off with lukewarm water ; 
then rub all over with fresh butter or lard. Cover it on 
the top and sides with a thick paste of flour and water, 
nearly half an inch thick. Lay upon this a large sheet of 
thin white wi-apping-paper well buttered, and above this 
thick foolscap. Keep all in place by greased pack-thread ; 
then put doAvn to roast with a lii tie water in the dripping- 
fftin. Let the fire be steady and strong. Pour a few ladle- 
fuls of butter and water over the meat now and then, to 
prevent the paper from scorching. If the haunch is large, 
it will take at least five hours to roast. About half an 
hour befoi'e j ou take it up, remo ve the papers and paste, 



162 COMMON SENSE. 

Rnd test witli a skewer to sec if it is done. If this passef 
easily to the bone through the thickest part, set it down to 
a more moderate fire and baste every few minutes with 
claret wine and melted butter. At the last, baste with but- 
ter, dredge with flour to make a light froth, and dish. It 
should be a fine brown by this time. Twist a frill of fringed 
paper around the knuckle. 

For gravy, put into a saucepan a pound or so of scraps 
of raw venison left from trimming the haunch, a quart ol 
water, a pinch of cloves, a few blades of mace, half a nut- 
meg, cayenne and salt to taste. Stew slowly to one-half the 
original quantity. Skim, strain, and return to the sauce- 
pan when you have rinsed it with hot water. Add three 
tablespoonfuls of currant jelly, a glass of claret, two table- 
spoonfuls of butter, and thicken with browned flour. Send 
to table in a tureen. 

Send around currant jelly with venison always. 

Neck. 

This is roasted precisely as is the haunch, allowing a 
quarter of an hour to a pound. 

Shoulder. 

This is also a roasting-piece, but may be cooked without 
the paste and paper. Baste often with butter and water, 
and toward the last, with claret and butter. Do not let it 
get dry for an instant. 

To Stew a Shoulder. 

Extract the bones through the under-side. Make 'a 
stuffing of several slices of fat mutton, minced fine and 
seasoned smartly with cayenne, salt, allsjnce, and wine, and 
fill the holes from which the bones were taken. Bind 
firmly in shape with broad tape. Put in a large sau :;epan 



VENISON. lt>3 

with a pint of gravy made from tlie refuse bits of reiiison^ 
add a glass of Madeira or port wine, and a little black pep- 
per. Cover tightly and stew very slowly three or foui 
hours, according to the size. It should be very tender. 
Remove the tapes with care ; dish, and when you have 
strained the gravy, pou,r over the meat. 
This is a most savory dish. 

Yenison Steaks. ^ 

These are taken from the neck or haunch. Have your 
gridiron well buttered, and fire clear and hot. Lay the 
steaks on the bars and broil rapidly, turning often, not to 
lose a drop of juice. They will take three or foiir minutes 
longer to broil than beef-steaks. ' Have ready in a hot chafing- 
dish a piece of butter the size of an egg for each pound of 
venison, a pinch of salt, a little pepper, a tablespoonful 
currant-jelly for each pound, and a glass of "svine for every 
four pounds. Tliis should be liquid, and warmed by the 
boiling water under the dish by the time the steaks are done 
to a tvirn. If you have no chafing-dish, heat in a saucepan. 
Lay each steak in the mixture singly, and turn over twice. 
Cover closely and let all heat together, with fresh hot water 
beneath — unless your lamp is burning — for five minutes 
before serving. If you serve in an ordinary dish, cover and 
set in the oven for the same time. 

Or, 
If you wish a plainer dish, omit the wine and jelly ; pepper 
and salt -Srhe steaks when broiled, and la}^ butter upon them 
in ths proportion I have stated, letting them stand between 
two hot dishes five minutes before they go to table, turning 
them three times in the gravy that runs from them to min- 
gle with the melted butter. Delicious steaks correspond- 
ing in shape to mutton chops are cut from the loin and i"ack. 



164 COMMON SENSE. 

Venison Cutlets. »J« 

Trim the cutlets nicely, and make gravy of tlie refuse 
bits in the proportion of a cup of cold water to half a pound 
of venison. Put in bones, scraps of fat, etc., and set on in 
a saucepan to stew while you make ready the cutlets. Lard 
with slips of fat salt pork a quarter of an inch apart, and 
projecting slightly on either side. When the gravy has 
stewed an hour, strain and let it cool. Lay the cutlets in a 
saucepan, with a few pieces of young onion on each. Allow 
one onion to four or five pounds. It should not be flavored 
strongly with this. Scatter also a little minced parsley 
and thyme between the layers of meat, with pepper, and a 
very little grated nutmeg. The pork lardoons will salt 
sufficiently. When you have put in all your meat, pour in 
the gravy, which shovild be warm — not hot. Stew steadily 
tweuty minutes, take up the cutlets and lay in a frying-pan 
in which you have heated just enough butter to prevent 
them from burning. Fry five minutes very quickly, turn- 
ing the cutlets over and over to brown, without drying 
them. Lay in order in a chafing-dish, and have ready the 
gravy to pour over them without delay. This should be 
done by straining the liquor left in the saucepan and return- 
ing to the fire, with the addition of a tablespoonful of cur- 
rant jelly, a teaspoonful Worcestershire or other piquant 
sauce, and half a glass of wine. Thicken with browned 
flour, boil up well and pour over the cutlets. Let all stand 
together in a hot dish five minutes before serving. Venison 
which is not fat or juicy enough for roasting makes a relish- 
able dish cooked after this receipt. 

Hashed Venison, t^ 

The remains of cold roast venison — especially a stuffed 
shoulder — may be used for this dish, and will give great 



VENISON. 165 

satisfaction to cook and consumers. Slice the meat from 
the bones. Piit tliese with the ftit and other scra2)s in a 
saucepan, with a large teacupful of cold water, a small 
onion — one of the button kind, minced, parsley and thyme, 
pepper and salt, and three or four whole cloves. Stew for 
an hour. Strain and return to the saucepan, with whatever 
gi'avy was left from the roast, a tablespoonful cui'rant jelly, 
one of tomato or mushroom catsup, a teaspoonful of an- 
chovy sauce, and a little browned flour. Boil for three 
minutes ; lay in the venison, cut into slices about an inch 
long, and let all heat over the fire for eight minutes, but do 
not allow the hash to boil. Stir frequently, and when it is 
smoking hot, turn into a deep covered dish. 
• 

EoAST Fawn. 

Clean, wash thoroughly; stuff with a good force-meat 
made of bread-crumbs, chopped pork, pepper and salt, a little 
grated nutmeg, the juice of a lemon. Moisten with water 
and cream, bind with beaten egg and melted butter. Sew 
up the fawn, turning the legs under, and binding close to 
the body. Cover with thin slices of fat pork, bound on with 
pack-thread, crossing in every direction, and roast at a quick 
fire. Allow twenty-two minutes to a pound. Twenty min- 
utes before it is dished, remove the pork, and set down the 
fawn to brown, basting with melted butter. At the last, 
dredge with flour, let this brown, froth with butter, and 
serve. 

Gai-nish with abvm dance of curled parsley, dotted with 
drops of red cui-rant jelly. A kid can be roasted in the same 
way — also hares and rabbits. 

Yenison Pasty. •{« 

This is a name dear to the heart of the Englishman, 
since the days when Friar Tuck feasted the disguised Coeuj 



i66 COMMON SENSE. 

de Lion tipon it in the depths of Sherwood Forest, until 
the present generation. In this covintry it is comparatively 
little known ; bvit I recommend it to those who have never 
yet been able to make venison " tolerably eatable." 

Almost any part of the deer can be vised for the purpose, 
but the neck and shoulders are generally preferred. 

Cut the raw venison from the bones, and set aside these, 
with the skin, fat, and refuse bits, foi* gravy. Put them in- 
to a saucepan with a shallot, pepper, salt, nutmeg and sweet 
herbs, cover well with cold water, and set on to boil. 
Meanwhile, cut the better and faii-er pieces of meat into 
squares an inch long, and cook in another saucepan until 
three-quarters done. Line a deep dish with good puff-i^aste. 
That for the lid should be made after the receipt appended 
to this. Put in the squares of venison, season with pepjjer, 
salt, and butter, and put in half a cupful of the liquor in 
which the meat was stewed, to keep it from burning at the 
bottom. Cover with a lid of the prepared pastry an inch 
thick. Cut a round hole in the middle, and if you have not 
a small tin cylinder that will fit this, make one of buttered 
paper ; stiff writing-paper is best. The hole should be large 
enough to admit your thumb. Bake steadily, covering the 
top with a sheet of clean paper so soon as it is firm, to prevent 
it from browning too fast. While it is cooking prepare the 
gravy. When all the substance has been extracted from the 
bones, etc., strain the liquor back into the saucepan ; let it 
come to a boil, and when you have skimmed carefully, add 
a glass of port wine, a tablespoonful of butter, the juice of 
a lemon, and some browned flour to thicken. Boil up once, 
remove the plug from the hole in the pastry, and pour in 
through a small funnel, or a paper horn, as much gravy as 
the pie will hold. Do this very quickly ; brush the crust 
over with beaten egg, and put back in the oven until it ia 
a delicate brown, or rather, a golden russet. The pie should 



VENISON. 167 

only be drawn to the door of tlie oven for these operations, 
and everything should be in readiness before it is taken 
out, that the crust may be light and flaky. If you have 
more gravy than you need for the dish, serve in a tureen 

Ckust of Pasty. 

1|- lb. of flour. 
12 oz. butter. 
3 eggs. 
Salt. 
Ice-water. 

Diy and sift the flour and cut up half the butter in it with 
a knife or chopper until the whole is fine and yellow ; salt, 
and work up with ice-water, lastly adding the eggs beaten 
very light. Work out rapidly, handling as little as pos- 
sible, roll out three times very thin, basting with butter, 
then into a lid nearly an inch thick, reserving a thin- 
ner one for ornaments. Having covered in your pie, cut 
from the second sheet with a cake-cutter, leaves, flowers, 
stars, or any figures you like to adorn the top of your crust. 
Bake the handsomest one upon a tin plate by itself and 
brush it over with egg when you glaze the pie. After the 
pasty is baked, cover the hole in the centre with this. 

If these directions be closely followed the j^asty will be 
delicious. Bake two or three houi-s, guiding yourself by 
the size of the pie. It is good hot or cold. 

Venison Ham. 

These are eaten raw, and will not keep so long as other 
smoked meats. 

Mix together in equal proportions, salt and brown 
sugar, and rub them hard into the hams with your hand. 
Pack them in a cask, sprinkling dry salt between them, 



168 COMMON SENSE. 

and let tliem lie eight da3rs, rubbing them over eviny day 
with dry salt and sugar. Next mix equal parts of fine salt, 
molasses, and a teaspoonful of saltpetre to every two hams. 
Take the hams out of the pickle, go over them with a brush 
dipped in cider vinegar, then in the new mixture. Empty 
the cask, wash it out with cold water, and repack the hams, 
dripping from the sticky bath, scattering fine salt over each. 
Let them lie eight days longer in this. Wash off the pickle 
first with tejiid water, until the salt crystals are removed ; 
then sponge -with vinegar, powder them with bran while 
wet, and smoke a fortnight, or, if large, three weeks. Wrap 
in brown paper that has no unpleasant odor, stitch a muslin 
cover over this, and whitewash, unless you mean to use at 
once. Chip or shave for the table. 

Venison Sausages. 

5 lbs. lean venison. 

2 " fat salt pork. 

5 teaspoonfuls powdered sage. 

4 " salt. 

4 " black pepper. 

2 " cayenne. 

1 small onion. 

Juice of one lemon. 

Chop the meat very small, season, and pack in skins or 
small stone jars. Hang the skins, and set the jars, tied 
down with bladders, in a cool, dry place. 

Fry as you do other sausages. 

EABBITS OR HARES. 

The tame rabbit is rarely if ever eaten. The wild hare 
of the South — in vulgar parlance, " old hare," although the 
creature may be but a day old — exactly corresponds with 



RABBITS OK HAKES. IGO 

the rabbit of the Noi'therii fields, and when fat and tender 
may be made into a variety of excellent dishes. 

Hares are unfit for eating in the early spiring. There is 
thus much significance in " Mad as a March hare." The 
real English hare is a much larger animal than that which 
is known in this country by this name. To speak correctly, 
all our " old field hares " are wild rabbits. 

Roast Rabbit. 

Clean, wash, and soak in water slightly salted for an 
hour and a half, changing it once during this time. It is 
best to make your butcher or hired man skin it before 
you undei'take to handle it. Afterward, the task is easy 
enough. Parboil the heart and liver, chop fine, and mix 
with a slice of fat pork, also minced. Make a force-meat 
of bread-crumbs, well seasoned and quite moist, using the 
water in which the giblets were boiled, and working in the 
minced meat. StuflT the body with this, and sew it up. 
Rub with butter and roast, basting with butter and water 
until the gravy flows freely, then with the drijjping. It 
should be done in an hour. Dredge Avith flour a few min- 
utes before taking it up, then froth with butter. Lay in a 
hot dish, add to the gravy a little lemon-juice, a young 
onion minced, a tablespoonful of butter, and thicken with 
browned flour. Give it a boil up, and serve in a tureen or 
boat. 

Garnish tlie rabbit with sHced lemon, and put a dot of 
currant jelly in the centre of each slice. Cut ofl' the head 
before sending to table. 

Rabbits Stewed with Onions. 

Clean a pair of nice rabbits ; soak in cold salt and water 
for an hour, to draw out the blood ; put on in a large sauce- 
8 



170 COMMON SENSE. 

pan with cold water enough to cover them, salt slightly, 
and stew until tender. Slice in another pot half a dozen 
onions, and boil in a very little water until thoroughly done. 
Drain off the water, and stir the onions into a gill of di-awn 
butter, pepper to taste, and when it simmers, add the juice 
of a lemon. Cut off the heads of the hares, lay in a hot 
dish and pour over them the onion-sauce. Let the dish 
stand in a warm jilace, closely covered, five minutes before 
sending to table. 

Fricasseed Rabbit ( White). »J« 

Clean two young rabbits, cut into joints, and soak in 
salt and water an hour. Put into a sauce2)an with a pint 
of cold water, a bunch of sweet herbs; an onion finely 
minced, a pinch of mace, one of nutmeg, pepper, and half a 
pound of fat salt pork, cut into slips. Cover, and stew 
until tender. Take out the rabbits and set in a dish where 
they will keep warm. Add to the gravy a cuj) of cream (or 
milk), two well-beaten eggs stirred in a little at a time, and 
a tablespoonful of butter. Boil up once — when you have 
thickened with flour wet in cold milk — and take the saucepan 
from the fire. Squeeze in the juice of a lemon, stirring all 
the while^ and pour over the rabbits. Do not cook the head 
or neck. 

Fricasseed Rabbit {Broimi). 

Cut off the head, — joint, and lay in soak for an hour. 
Season the pieces with pepper and salt, dredge with flour, 
and fry in butter or nice dripping until brown. Take from 
the fat, lay in a saucepan, and cover with broth made of 
bits of veal or lamb. Add a minced onion, a gi'eat spoonful 
of walnut catsup, a bunch of sweet herbs, a pinch of cloves 
and one of allspice, half a teaspoonful of cayenne. Cover 
closely, and simmer for half an hour. L:v- the pieces of 



BABBITS OE HARES. 171 

hare in order upon a hot dish and cover to keep warm. 
Strain the gravy, return to the saucepan, thicken with 
browned flour, put in a tablespoonful of butter, squeeze in 
the juice of a lemon, pour over the rabbits, and send to 
table. 

Larded Eabbit. 

Cut off the head and divide the body into joints. Lard 
with slips of fat pork ; put into a clean hot frying-pan ana 
fry until half done. Have ready some strained gi'avy made 
of veal or beef — the first is better ; put the pieces of i-abbit 
into a saucepan, with a bunch of sweet herbs, a minced onion, 
and some pepper. Stew, closely covered, half an hour, or 
until tender ; take out the rabbits and lay in a hot covered 
dish. Strain tlie gravy, add a tablespoonful of butter, the 
juice of a lemon, and thicken with flour. Boil up and pour 
over the meat. 

Fried Rabbit. 

They must be very tender for this purpose. Cut into 

joints; soak for an hour in salt and water; dip in beaten 

egg, then in powdered cracker, and fry brown in nice sweet 

lard or dripping. Serve with onion sauce. Garnish with 

sliced lemon. 

Barbecued Rabbit. »{« 

Clean and wash the rabbit, which must be plump and 
young, and having opened it all the way on the under-side, 
lay it flat, with a small plate or saucer to keep it down, in 
salted water for half an hour. Wipe dry and broil whole, 
with the exception of the head, when you have gashed 
across the back-bone in eight or ten places that the heat 
may penetrate this, the thickest part. Your fire should bo 
hot and clear, the rabbit turned often. When browned and 
tender, lay upon a very hot dish, pepper and salt and butter 
profusely, turning the rabbit over and over to soak up th«t 



172 C05IM0N' BENSE. 

melted butter. Cover and set in the oven for five minutes, 
and heat in a tin cup two tablespoonfuls of vinegar season- 
ed with one of made mustard. Anoint the hot rabbit well 
with this, cover and send to table garnished with crisped 
parsley. 

The odor of this barbecue is most appetizing, and the 
taste not a whit inferior. 

Rabbit Pie. 

Cut a pair of rabbits into eight pieces each, soak in salt- 
ed water half an hour, and stew until half done in enough 
water to cover them. Cut a quarter of a poimd of fat pork ' 
into slips, and boil four eggs hard. Lay some bits of pork 
in the bottom of a deep dish and upon these a layer of the 
rabbit. Upon this spread slices of boiled egg, peppered and 
buttered. Sprinkle, moreover, with a little powdered mace, 
and squeeze a few drops of lemon-juice upon each piece of 
meat. Proceed in this order until the dish is full, the top 
layer being pork. Pour in the water in which the rabbit 
was boiled, when you have salted it and added some lumps 
of butter rolled in flour. Cover with puff-paste, cut a slit 
in the middle, and bake one hour, laying paper over the top 
should it brown too fast. 

SQUIRRELS. 

The large gray squirrel is seldom eaten at the North, 
but in great request in Vii'ginia and other Southern States. 
It is generally barbecued, precisely as are rabbits ; broiled, 
[fricasseed, or — most popular of all — made into a Brunswick 
Btew. This is named fi'om Brunswick County, Virginia, and 
is a famous dish — or was — at the political and social pic-nics 
known as barbecues. I am happy to be able to give a re- 
ceipt for this stew that is genuine and explicit, and for 
which T am indebted to a Virginia housekeeper. 



8QUIEREL8. 173 

Brunswick St^w. ^ 

2 squirrels — 3, if small. 

1 qviart of tomatoes — peeled and sliced. 

1 pint butter-beans, or Lima. 

6 potatoes, parboiled and sliced. 

6 ears of green corn cut from the cob. 

^ lb, butter. 

^ " fat salt pork. 

1 teaspoonful ground black pepper. 

Half a teaspoonful cayenne. 

1 gallon water. 

1 tablespoonful salt. 

2 teaspoonfuls white sugar. 
1 onion, minced small. 

Put on the water with the salt in it, and boil five min- 
lAes. Put in the onion, beans, corn, pork or bacon cut 
into shreds, potatoes, pepper, and the squirrels, which must 
first be cut into joints and laid in cold salt and water to 
draw out the blood. Cover closely and stew two and a 
lialf hours very slowly, stirring frequently from the bot- 
tom. Then add the tomatoes and sugar, and stew an hour 
longer. Ten minutes before you take it from the fire add 
the butter, cut into bits the size of a walnut, rolled in 
flour. Give a final boil, taste to see that it is seasoned to 
your liking, and turn into a soup-turec n. It is eaten from 
soup-plates. Chickens may be substituted for squirrels. 

Ragout of Squirrels. 

Skin, clean, and quarter a pair of fine young squirrels, 
and soak in salt and Avater to draw out the blood. Slice a 
tolerably large onion and fry brown in a tablespoonful of 
butter. Stir into the frying-pan five tablespoonfuls of boil 
Jig water, and thicken Avith two teaspoonfuls of browned 



174 COMMON SENSE. 

flour. Put the squirrels into a saucepan, -witli a quartel 
of a pound of bacon cut into slips ; season with pepper and 
salt to taste, add tlie onions and their gravy, and half a 
cupful of tepid water. Cover and stew for forty minutes, 
or until tender ; pour in a glass of wine and the juice of 
half a lemon, shake around well, and turn into a deep cov- 
ered dish. 

Broiled Squirrels. 

Clean and soak to draw out the blood. Wijoe dry and 
broil over a hot, clear fire, turning often. When done, lay 
in a hot dish and anoint with melted butter, seasoned with 
pejiper and salt. Use at least a tablespoonful for each 
squirrel, and let it lie between two hot dishes five minutes 
before sending to table. 

PHEASANTS, PARTRIDGES, QUAILS, GROUSE, 
ETC. 
The real pheasant is never sold in American markets. 
The bird known as such at the South is called a partridge 
at the North, and is, properly speaking, the ruffled grouse. 
The Northern quail is the English and Southern partridge. 
The wild fowls brought by the hundred dozen from the Far 
West to Eastern cities, and generally styled prairie-fowls, 
are a species of grouse. The mode of cooking all these is 
substantially the same. 

Roast. 

Clean, truss, and stufi" as you do chickens ; roast at a 
hot fire, and baste with butter and water until brown ; 
spi'inkle with salt, dredge lightly at the last with flour to 
froth the birds, and serve hot. Thicken tlie gravy with 
browned flour, boil up, and serve in a boat. Wash the in- 
side of all game — prairie-fowls in particular — with soda and 
water, rinsing out carefully afterward with fair water. 



PHEASANTS, PARTKIDGES, QUAILS, ETC. 1T5 

Broiled. 

Clean, •wash, aiicl split down tlie back. Lay in cold 
water lialf an hour. "Wipe carefully, season with salt and 
pepper, and broil on a gridiron over a bright fire. "When 
done, lay in a hot dish, butter on both sides well, and serva 
at once. 

Broiled quails are delicious and noiirishing fare for in- 
valids. 

Grouse roasted with Bacon. »J« 

Clean, truss, and stuff as usual. Cover the entire bird 
with thin slices of corned ham or pork, binding all with 
buttered pack-thread. Roast three-quarters of an hour, 
basting with butter and water three times, then with the 
dripping. "When quite done, dish with the ham laid about 
the body of the bii'd. Skim the gi"a\'y, thicken with 
browned flour, season with pepper and the juice of a lemon. 
Boil up once. 

Quails roasted with Ham. t^ 

Proceed as with the gi-ouse, but cover the ham or pork 
with a sheet of white pajier, having secured the slices of 
meat with pack-thread. Stitch the papers on, and keep 
them well basted with butter and water, that they may not 
bum. Roast three-quarters of an hour, if the fire is good. 
Remove the papers and meat before sendmg to table, and 
brown quickly. This is the nicest way of cooking quails. 

Salmi of Game. 

Cut cold roast partridges, grouse, or quails into joints, 
und lay aside while you prepare the gravy. This is made 
of the bones, dressing, skin, and general odds and ends, 
after you have selecte<.l the neatest pieces of the birds. Put 
these — the scraps — into a saucepan, with one small onion. 



176 COMMON SENSE. 

minced, and a bunch of sweet herbs ; pour in a pint of 
water, and whatever gi'avy you may have, and stew, close- 
ly covered, for nearly an hour. A few bits of pork should- 
be added if you have no gravy. Skim and strain, retui-n 
to the fire, and add a little brown sherry and lemon-juice, 
with a pinch of nutmeg ; thicken with brown flour, if the 
stuffing has not thickened it sufficiently, boil up, and pour 
over the reserved meat, which should be put into another 
saucepan. Warm until all is smoking-hot, but do not let 
it boil. Arrange the pieces of bird in a symmetrical heap 
upon a dish, and pour the gravy over them. 

Game Pie — ( Very fine). 

This may be made of any of the bu-ds named in the 
foregoing receipts. Grouse and quails together make a de- 
lightful Christmas pie. Clean and wash the birds ; cut the 
quails in half, the grouse into four pieces. Trim off bits 
of the inferior portions, necks, lower ribs, etc., and put 
them with the giblets into a saucepan, with a pint and a 
half of water, if your pie requires six biixls. While this is 
stewing make a good pufF-paste and line a large pudding- 
dish, reserving enough for a lid at least half an inch thick. 
When the livers are tender, take them out, leaving the 
gravy to stew in the covered saucepan. Lard the breasts 
of the birds with tiny strips of salt pork, and mince a cou- 
ple of slices of the same with the livers, a bunch of parsley, 
sweet marjoram, and thyme, also chopped fine, the juice 
of a lemon, pepper, and a very small shallot. Make a force- 
meat of this, with bread-crumbs moistened with warm 
milk. Put some thin strips of cold corned (not smoked) 
ham in the bottom of the pie, next to the crust ; lay upon 
these pieces of the bird, jDeppered and buttered, then a layer 
of the force-meat, and so on, until you are ready for the 
gi-avy. Strain this, return to the fire, and season witl- 



PHEASANTS, PARTRIDGES, QUAILS, ETC. 177 

pepper and a glass of wiae. Heat to a boil, pour into the 
pie, and cover ^\^.tll the upper crust, cutting a slit in the 
middle. Ornament with pastry leaves, arranged in a 
wreath about the edge, and in the middle a pastry bird, 
with curled strips of pastry about it. These last should be 
baked separately and laid on when the pie is done, to co\'er 
the hole in the middle. 

Bake three hours if your pie is large, covering -ftith pa 
per if it threaten to brown too fast. 

Quail Pie. 

Clean, truss, and stuflF the bu-ds. Loosen the joints with 
a penknife, but do not separate them. Parboil them for 
ten minutes, while you prepai-e a puff-paste. Line a deep 
dish with this ; put in the bottom some shreds of salt pork 
or ham ; next, a layer of hard-boiled eggs, buttered and 
peppered ; then the birds, sprinkled with pepper and 
minced parsley. Squeeze some lemon-juice upon them, and 
lay upon the breasts pieces of butter rolled in flour. Cover 
with slices of egg, then with shred ham ; pour in some of 
the gi'avy in which the quails wei-e parboiled, and put on 
the lid, leaving a hole in the middle. Bake over an hour. 

Wild Pigeons { Stewed).*^ 

Clean and wash very carefully, then lay in salt and wa- 
ter for an hour. Rinse the inside with soda and water, 
shaking it well about in the cavity ; wash out with fair 
water and stuff \\ath a force-meat made of bread-crumbs and 
chopped salt pork, seasoned with pepper. Sew up the bu-Us, 
and put on to stew in enough cold water to cover them, 
and allow to each a fair slice of fat bacon cut into narrow 
strips. Season with pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Boil 
slowly in a covered saucepan until tender ; take from the 
gravj' and lay in a covered dish to keep warm. Strain the 
8* 



178 COISESION SENSE. 

gravy, add the juice of a lemon and a tablespoonful of cur* 
rant jelly, thickening with browned flour. Boil up and 
pour over the pigeons. 

WiLD-PiGEOX Pie. *{« 

This is made precisely as is quail pie, except that the 
pigeons are cut into four pieces each, and not stuffed. Par- 
boil and lay in the dish in alternate layers with the bacon 
and boiled eggs. Make the gravy richer than for the quails, 
by the addition of a good lump of butter, rolled in flotir, 
stirred in and boiled up to thicken before you put it on 
the fire. Wild pigeons are usually tougher and leaner than 
tame. 

WILD DUCKS. 

Nearly all wild ducks are liable to have a fishy flavor, 
and when handled by inexperienced cooks, are sometimes 
uneatable from this cause. Before roasting them, guard 
against this by parboiling them with a small carrot, peeled, 
put within each. Tliis will absorb the unpleasant taste. An 
onion will have the same effect ; but, unless you mean to 
use onion in the stuffing, the carrot is preferable. In my 
own kitchen I usually jiut in the onion, considering a sus- 
picion of garhc a desideratum in roast duck, whether wild 
or tame. 

Eg AST Duck ( Wild). 

Parboil as above directed ; throw away the carrot or 
onion, lay in fresh water h.df an hour ; stuff with bread- 
crumbs seasoned with pepper, salt, sage, and onion, and 
roast until bi'own and tender, basting for half the time with 
butter and water, then with the drippings. Add to the 
gravy, when you have taken up the ducks, a tablespoonful 
of current jelly, and a pinch of cayenne. Thicken with 
browned flour and serve in a tureen. 



WILD DUCKS — WILD TURKEY. 179 

Wild Ducks {Stewed). »J* 

Parboil ten minutes, when you liave drawn tliem, and 
put in a raw carrot or onion. Lay in veiy cold water half 
an hour. Cut into joints, pepper, salt, and flour them. 
Have ready some butter in a frying-pan, and fry them a 
light brown. Put them in a saucepan and cover with gravy 
made of the giblets,- necks, and some bits of lean veal. Add 
a minced shallot, a buncli of sweet hei^bs, salt, and pepper. 
Cover closely and stew half an hour, or until tender, Tako 
out the duck, strain the gravy when you have skinuned it ; 
put in a half-cup of cream or rich milk in which an egghaa 
been beaten, thicken with browned flour, add a tablespoon- 
ful of WTJie and the juice of half a lemon, beaten in gradual- 
ly not to curdle the cream ; boil up and pour over the ducks. 
This is about the best way of cooking wild ducks. 

WILD TURKEY, 

This stately stalker of Southern forests and Western 
prairies is eagei'ly sought after by the lovers of good eating 
m those regions. The dark meat and game flavor proclaim 
his bii-thriglit of lordly freedom as truly after he is slain 
and cooked, as did his lithe grace of figure, lofty carriage, 
and bright eye while he trod his native wilds. I have heard 
sportsmen declare that when they have inveigled him up to a 
blind by imitating the call of his harem or younglings, they 
have stood in covert, gun at shoulder and finger on the 
trigger, spell-bound by pitying admiration of his beauty. 
But I have never seen that sensibility curbed appetite while 
they told the story at the table adorned by the royal bird ; 
have noted, indeed, that their mouths watered rather than 
their eyes, as he crumbled, like a dissolving view, under the 
olade of the carver. 

Draw and wash the inside very carefully, as with all 



180 COAOION SENSE. 

game. Domestic fowls are, or should be, kept up witlioui 
eating for at least twelve hours before thej' are killed ; but 
we must shoot wild when we can get the chance, an(i of 
course it often happens that their crops are distended by a 
recent hearty meal of rank or green food. "Wipe the cavity 
with a dry soft cloth before you stuff. Have a rich force- 
meat, bread-crumbs, some bits of fat pork, chopped fine, 
pepper, and salt. ^loisten with milk, and beat in an egg 
and a couple of tablespoonfuls of melted butter. Baste with 
butter and water for the first hour, then three or four times 
with the gravy; lastly, five or six times with melted butter. A 
generous and able housekeeper told me once that she al- 
ways allowed a pound of butter for basting a large wild 
turkey. This was an exti'avagant quantity, but the meat 
is drier than that of the domestic fowl, and not nearly so 
fat. Dredge with Hour at the last, froth with butter, and 
when he is of a tempting brown, serve. Skim the gravy, 
add a little hot water, pepper, thicken with the giblets chop- 
ped fine and bi'owned flour, boil up, and pour into a tureen. 
At the South the giblets are not put in the gravy, but laid 
whole, one under each wing, when the turkey is dished. 
Garnish with small fried sausages, not larger than a dollar, 
crisped parsley between them. 

Send around currant jelly and cranberry sauce with it. 

SMALL BIRDS. 

Jloast /SnijJe or J^ lovers. 

Clean and truss, but do not stiafF. Lay in rows in the 
dripping-pan, or tie upon a spit, sprinkle with salt, and baste 
well with butter, then with butter and water. When they 
liegin to brown, which will be in about ten minutes, cut as 
many rounds of bread (without crust) as there are birds. 
Toast quickly, butter, and lay in the dripping-pan, a bird 



SMALL BIKDS. 181 

upou each. When the birds are done, serve upon the toast, 
with the gravy poured over it. The toast should lie under 
them Avhile cooking at least five miaiites, during which time 
the birds should be basted with melted butter seasoned 
with pe2)per. 

The lax'gest snipe will not require above twenty minutes 
to roast. 

Wdodcock. 

This is the most delicious of small birds, and may be 
either roasted or broiled. 

Itoast. 

The English do not draw woodcock, regarding the trail 
as a bonne bouclie, and I have known American house- 
keepers who copied them in this respect. In this case, 
roast precisely as you would snipe or plover, only putting 
the toast under the bii-ds so soon as they begin to cook, 
to catch the trail. 

To my taste, a better, and certainly to common sense 
people a less objectionable plan, is to fill the birds with a 
I'ich force-meat of bread-crumbs, peppered and salted, mois- 
tened with cream until it is very soft, and shortened with 
melted butter. Sew them up and i-oast, basting with butter 
and water, from twenty minutes to half an ho\ir. When 
lialf done, put circxilar slices of buttered toast beneath, 
and serve upon these when you take them up. 

JBroiled. 

Sjilit do-svn the back, and broil over a clear fire. Butter, 
pepper, and salt when done, and let them lie between twc 
hot dishes for five minutes before sending to table. Small 
snipe are nice broiled in this way ; also robins and doves. 



182 COMAIOiSr SENSE. 

Salmi of Woodcock or Snipe. 

Clean and half-roast the birds ; cut in quarters, and put 
in a saucepan Avith gravy made of the giblets, necks, and 
some bits of fat pork, stewed in a little water. Add a 
minced button onion, salt, and a pinch of cayenne, and stew 
fifteen minutes or until tender, closely covered. Take out 
the birds, and pile neatly upon buttered toast in a chafing- 
dish. Strain the gravy and return to the fire, adding some 
small pieces of butter rolled in flour, the juice of a lemon, 
and a little wine. Boil up, and pour over the salmi. 

Ortolans, Reed-Birds, Rail, and Sora 

may be roasted or broiled. A good way is to roll an oyster 
in melted butter, then in bread-crumbs seasoned with pep- 
per and salt, and put into each bird before roasting. Baste 
with butter and water three times, put the rounds of toast 
underneath, and baste freely with melted butter. They 
will require about twelve minutes to cook, and will be 
found delicious. 

To Keep Game from Tainting. 

Draw so soon as they come into your possession ; rinse 
with soda and water, then with pure cold water ; wipe dry, 
and rub them lightly with a mixtiire of fine salt and black 
pepper. If you must keep them some time, put in the 
cavity of each fowl a piece of charcoal ; hang them in a 
cool, dark place, with a cloth thrown over them. Small 
birds, unless there are too many of them, may be kept in 
a refrigerator after you have drawn, washed, and wiped 
them. 

The charcoal is an admirable preventive of decompo- 
sition. 



BAUCES FOR MEAT AND FISH. 183 

SAUCES FOR MEAT AND FISH. 

Tliese are no longer the appendages of the rich man's 
bill of fare only. A general knowledge of made sauces, 
as well as the more expensive ones impoi-ted from abroad 
and sold here at high prices, is a part of every intelligent 
housekeeper's culinary education. Few are so ignorant as 
to serve a fish sauce with game, or vice versa. From the 
immense number of receipts which I have collected and 
examined, I have selected comparatively few but such aa 
I consider "representative" articles. The ingenious house- 
wife is at liberty, as I have said before, elsewhere, to modify 
and improve upon them. 

First, 2)ai' excellence, as the most important, and because 
it is the groundwork of many others, 1 place 

Melted or Drawn Butter. 
No. 1. 
2 teaspoonfuls flour. 
1^ ounce butter. 
1 teacupful water or milk. 
A little salt. 

Put the flour and salt in a bowl, and add a little at a 
time of the water or milk, working it very smooth as you 
go on. Put into a tin cup or saucepan, and set in a vessel 
of boiling water. As it warms, stir, and when it has boiled 
a minute or more, add the butter by degrees, stirring all 
the time until it is entirely melted and incorporated with 
the flour and water. Boil one minute. 

Mix with milk when you wish to \ise for puddings ; 
with water for meats and fish. 



184 COMMON SEK8E. 

N"0. 2. 
1^ teaspoonful of flour. 

2 ounces butter. 

1 teacupful (small) hot water. 

Wet tlie flour to a thin smooth paste with cold water^ 
and stir into the hot, which should be in the inner vessel. 
When it boils, add the butter by degrees, and stir until 
well mixed. Boil one minute. 

No. 3. 
3 ounces butter. 
Half-pint water (hot). 
A beaten egg. 
1 heaping teaspoonful flour. 

Wet the flour to a smooth paste with a little cold milk, 
and add to the hot water in the inner vessel, stirring until 
thick. Have ready the beaten egg in a cup. Take a tea- 
spoonful of the mixture from the fire, and beat with this 
until light ; then another, and still another. Set aside the 
cup when this is done, and stir the butter into the con- 
tents of the inner saucepan gradually, until thoroughly 
mixed, then add the beaten egg in the same way. There is 
no danger of clotting the egg, if it be treated as I have 
described. 

Egg Sauce. *J<« 

3 hard-boiled eggs. 

A good teacupful drawn butter. 
A little salt. 

Chop the yolks only of the eggs very fine, and beat 
into the hot drawn butter, salting to taste. 

This is used for boiled fowls and boiled fish. For the 
former, you can add some minced parsley ; for the latter 



SAUCES FOR MEAT AND FISH. 185 

chopped pickles, capers, or nasturtium seed. For boiled 
beef, a small shallot miuced fine. 

Or, 
Omit the boiled eggs, and beat up two raw ones very lighi 
and put into the drawn butter instead, as directed in No. 3. 
For boiled beef or chicken, you may make the drav/n but- 
ter of hot liquor taken from the pot in which the meat ia 
cooking, having first carefully skimmed it. 

Sauce for Boiled or Baked Fish. 

4 ounces butter. 

1 tablespoonful flour. 

2 anchovies. 

1 teaspoonful chopped capers, or nasturtium seed, 
or green pickle. 

1 shallot. 

Pepper and salt to taste. 

1 tablespoonful vinegar. 

1 teacupful hot water. 
Put the water into the inner saucepan, chop the an- 
chovies and shallot, and put in with the pejiper and salt. 
Boil two minutes, and strain back into the saucepan when 
you have rinsed with hot water. Now add the flour wet 
smooth with cold water, and stir \intil it thickens ; put in 
the butter by degrees, and, when it is thoroughly melted 
and mixed, the vinegar ; lastly, the capers and a little nut- 
meg. 

White Sauce for Fish. »{• 

Make drawn biitter by receipt No. 2, but with double 
the quantity of flour, and use, instead of water, the liqvioj 
in which the fish was boiled. Add four tablespoonfuls of 
milk, in which a shallot and a head of celery or a pinch of 



180 COMMON SENSE. 

celery seed lias been boiled, then strained out. Boil one 
minute, and stir in a teaspoonful of chopped parsley. 

Oyster Sauce. »J« 

1 pint oysters. 
Half a lemon. 

2 tablespoonfuls butter. 
1 teaspoonful flour. 

1 teacupful milk or cream. 
Cayenne and nutmeg to taste. 

Stew the oysters in their own liquor five minutes, and 
add the milk. Wlien this boils, strain the liquor and re- 
turn to the saucepan. Thicken with the flour when you 
have wet it with cold water ; stir well in ; put in the but- 
ter, next the cayenne (if you like it), boil one minute ; 
squeeze in the lemon-juice, shake it around well, and pour 
out. 

Or, 

Drain the oysters dry without cooking at all ; make the 
sauce with the liquor and other ingredients just named. 
Chop the raw oysters, and stir in wlien you do the butter ; 
boil five minutes, and pour into the tureen. Some put in 
the oysters whole, considering that the sauce is handsomer 
than when they are chopped. 

Oyster sauce is used for boiled halibut, cod, and othei 
fish, for boiled turkey, chickens, and white meats generally, 

Crab Sauce. 

1 crab, boiled and cold, 
4 tablespoonfuls of milk. 
1 teacupful drawn butter. 
Cayenne, mace, and salt to taste. 



SAUCES FOR MEAT AND FISU. . 1S7 

Make tlie drawn butter as usual, and stix in the milk. 
Pick the meat from the crab, chop very fine, season with 
cayenne, mace, and salt to taste ; stir into the dra^vn but- 
ter. Simmer three minutes, but do not boil. 

Lobster sauce is very nice made as above, with the ad- 
dition of a teaspoonful of made mustard and the juice of 
half a lemon. This is a good fish sauce. 

Anchovy Sauce, 

6 anchovies. 

A teacupful drawn butter. 

A wine-glass pale sherry. 

Soak the anchovies in cold water two ho; rs ; piill them 
to pieces, and simmer in just enough water to cover them 
for half an hour. Strain the liquor into the drawn butter 
(No. 3), boil a minute, add the wine ; heat gradually to a 
boil, and stew five minutes longer. 

Serve with boiled fish. 

Sauce fok Lobsters. 

5 tablespoonfuls fresh b\itter. 

Teacupful vinegar. 

Salt and pepper to taste, with a heaping tea 

sjjoouful white sugar. 
1 teaspoonful made mustard. 
Minced parsley. 

Beat the butter to a cream, adding gradually the vine- 
gai', sal'-^ and pepper. Boil a bunch of parsley five minutes, 
chop small ; beat into the butter ; lastly the sugar and 
mustard. The butter must be light as whipped egg. 



188 common sense. 

Bread Sauce. 

1 pint milk. 

1 cup bread-crumbs (very fine). 

1 onion, sliced. 

A pinch of mace. 

Pepper and salt to taste. 

3 tablespoonfuls butter. 

Simmer tbe sliced onion in the milk until tender ; strain 
the milk and pour over the bread-crumbs, which should be 
put into a saucepan. Cover and soak half an hour ; beat 
smooth with an egg- whip, add the seasoning and butter; 
stir in well, boil up once, and serve in a tureen. If it is 
too thick, add boiling water and more butter. 

This sauce is for roast poviltry. Some people add some 
of the gravy from the dripping-pan, first straining it and 
beating it well in with the sauce. 

White Celery Sauce. 

2 large heads of celery. 

1 teacupful of broth in which the fowl is boiled. 

1 " cream or milk. 

Salt and nutmeg. 

Heaping tablespoonful flour, and same of butter. 

Boil the celery tender in salted water ; drain, and cut 
into bits half an inch long. Thicken the gravy from the 
fowl — a teacupfvil — with the flour ; add the butter, salt, and 
nutmeg, then the milk. Stir and beat until it is smooth ; 
put in the celery ; heat almost to boiling, stin-ing all the 
while ; serve in a tureen, or, if you prefer, pour it over tha 
boiled meat or fowls. 



SAUCES FOR MEAT AND FISH. 189 

OxioN Sauce. 

4 white onions. 
1 teacupful hot milk. 
3 tablespoonfuls butter. 
Salt and pepper to taste. 

Peel the onions, boil tender, press the water fx-om 
them, and mince fine. Have ready the hot milk in a sauce- 
pan ; stir in the onions, then the butter, salt, and pepper. 
Boil up once. 

If you want to have it particularly good, make nice 
melted or drawn butter (No. 3) ; beat the mashed onion 
into it ; add a teacupful of cream or new milk ; season, 
boil up, and serve. 

MaItre d'H6tel Sauce. »J« 

1 teacupful drawTi butter. 
1 teaspoonful minced parsley. 
1 lemon. 
Cayenne and salt to taste. 

Draw the butter (No. 2) ; boil the parsley thi-ee min- 
utes ; take it out and lay in cold water five minutes, to 
cool ; chop and stir into tlie butter ; squeeze in the lemon- 
juice, the pepper and salt; beat hard with an egg-whip, 
return to the fii-e, and boil up once. 

This is a "stock" sauce, being sviitable for so many 
dishes, roast or boiled. 

/ Mint Sauce for Roast Lamb. 

• 2 tablespoonfuls green mint, chopped fine. 
1 tablespoonful powdered sugar. 
Half a teacupful cider \inegar. 



190 COMMON SENSE. 

Chop the mint, put the sugar and vinegai in a sauc»- 
boat, and stir in the mint. Let it stand in a cool plac« 
fifteen minutes before sending to table. 

Mushroom Sauce. 

1 teacupful young mushi'ooms. 

4 tablespoonfuls butter. 

1 teacupful cream or milk. 

1 teaspoonful flour. 

Nutmeg, mace, and salt to taste. 

Stew the mushrooms in barely enough water to cover 
them until tender. Drain, but do not press them, and add 
the cream, butter, and seasoning. Stew over a bright fire, 
stirring all the while until it begins to thicken. Add the 
flour wet in cold milk, boil up and serve in a boat, or pour 
over boiled chickens, rabbits, etc. 

Cauliflower Sauce, 

1 small cauliflower. 

3 tablespoonfuls butter, cut in bits, and rolled in 

flour. 
1 onion. ^ 

1 small head of celery. 
Mace, pepper, and salt. 
1 teacupful water. 
1 teacvtpful milk or cream. 

Boil the cauliflower in two waters, changing when about 
half done, and throwing away the first, reserve a teacupful 
of the last. Take out the cauliflower, drain and mince. 
Cook in another saucepan the onion and celery, minffing 
them when tender. Heat the reserved cupful of water 
again in a saucepan, add the milk ; when warm put in the 



SAijCES FOR MEAT AXD FISH. 191 

cauliflower and ouion, tlie butter and seasoning — coating 
the butter thickly with flour ; boil \intil it thickens. 

This is a delicious sauce for boiled corned beef and 
mutton. 

Asparagus Sauce. 

A dozen heads of asparagus. 

2 teacupfuls drawn butter. 

2 eggs. 

The juice of half a lemon. 

Salt and white pepper. 
Boil the tender heads in a very little salted water. 
Drain and chop them. Have ready a pint of drawn but- 
ter, with two raw eggs beaten into it ; add the asparagus, 
and season, squeezing in the lemon-juice last. The buttei 
must be hot, but do not cook after putting in the asparagus 
heads. This accompanies boiled fowls, stewed fillet of veal, 
or boiled mutton. 

Apple Sauce. 
Pare, core, and slice some ripe tai-t apples, stew in water 
enough to cover them until they break to pieces. Beat up 
to a smooth pulp, stii- in a good lump of butter, and sugar 
to taste. 

Apple sauce is the invariable accompaniment of roast 
pork — or fresh pork cooked in any way. If you wish, you 
can add a little nutmeg. 

Peach Sauce. 
Soak a quart of dried peaches in water four hours. 
Wash them, rubbing, them against one another by stirring 
around with a wooden spoon. Drain, and put into a sauce- 
pan with just enough water to cover them. Stew until 
they break to pieces. Bub to a soft smooth pulp, sweeten 
to taste with white sugar. Send to table cold, with roast 
game or other meats. 



192 COMMON SENSE. 

Cranberry Sauce. 

Wash and pick a quart of ripe cranberries, and put into 
a saucepan with a teacupful of water. Stew slowly, stir- 
ring often until they are thick as marmalade. They require 
at least an hour and a half to cook. When you take them 
from the fire, sweeten abundantly with white svigar. If 
sweetened while cooking, the color will be bad. Put them 
into a mould and set aside to get cold. 

Or, ^ 
And this is a nicer plan — strain the pulp through a cul- 
lender or sieve, or coarse mosquito-net, into a mould wet 
with cold water. When firm, turn into a glass dish or sal- 
ver. Be sure that it is sweet enough. 

Eat with roast turkey, game, and roast ducks. 

To Brown Flour. 

Spread upon a tin plate, set upon the stove, or in a very 
hot oven, and stir continually after it begins to color, until 
it is brown all through. 

Keep it always on hand. Make it at odd minutes, and 
put away in a glass jar, covered closely. Shake uj) every 
few days to keep it light and prevent lumping. 

To Brown Butter. 

Put a lump of butter into a hot frying-pan, and toss it 
around over a clear fire until it browns. Dredge browned 
flour over it, and stir to a smooth batter until it begins to 
boil. Use it for coloring gravies, such as brown fricassees, 
etc. ; or make into sauce for baked fish and fish-steaks, by 
beating, in celeiy or onion vinegar, a very little broAvn sugar 
and some cayenne. 



CATSUPS AND FLAYOKED VESTEGARS. 193 



CATSUPS AND FLAVORED VINEGARS. 
Made Mustard, i^ 

4 tablespoonfuls best Euglish mustard. 

2 teaspoonfuls salt. 

2 " white siigai". 

1 " white pepper. 

2 " salad oil. 

Vinegar to mix to a smooth paste — celeiy or Tarragon 

vinegar if you have it. 
1 small garlic, minced very small. 

Put the mustard in a bowl and wet with the oil, rub- 
bing it in with a silver or wooden si)oon until it is absorbed. 
Wet with vinegar to a stiff paste ; add salt, pepper, sugar, 
and garlic, and work all together thoroughly, wetting little 
by little with the vinegar until you can beat it as you do 
cake-batter. Beat five minutes very hard ; put into wide- 
mouthed bottles — empty Fi-ench mustard bottles, if you 
have them — pour a little oil on top, cork tightly, and set 
away in a cool place. It will be mellow enough for use in 
a couple of days. 

Having used this mustard for years in my own familj'^, 
I can safely advise my friends to undertake the trifling labor 
of preparing it in consideration of the satisfaction to be do- 
rived fi'om the condiment. I mix in a Wedgewood mortar, 
with pestle of the same ; but a bowl is nearly as good It 
%vill keep for weeks. 

Horse-radish. 

Scrape or grind, cover with vinegar, and keep in wide- 
mouthed bottles. To eat with roast beef and cold meats. 
9 



19J: COMMON SENSE. 



Walnut Catsup. 



Choose young walnuts tender enougli to be pierced with 
a pin or needle. Prick them in several places, and lay in a 
jar with a handful of salt to every twenty-five, and water 
enough to cover them. Break them with a billet of wood 
or wooden beetle, and let them lie in the pickle a fortnight, 
stirring twice a day. Drain off the liquor into a saucepan, 
and cover the shells with boiling vinegar to extract Avhat 
juice remains in them. Crush to a pulp and strain through 
a cullender into the saucepan. Allow for every quart an 
ounce of black pepper and one of ginger, half an ounce of 
cloves and half an ounce of nutmeg, beaten fine. Put in a 
pinch of cayenne, a shallot minced fine for every two quarts, 
and a thimbleful of celery-seed tied in a bag for the same 
quantity. Boil all together for an hour, if there be a gal- 
lon of the mixture. Bottle when cold, putting an equal 
quantity of the spice iu each flask. Butternuts make de- 
lightful catsup. 

Mushroom Catsup, 

2 quarts of mushrooms, 
^ lb. of salt. 

Lay in an earthenware pan, in alternate layers of mush- 
rooms and salt ; let them lie six hovirs, then break into bits. 
Set in a cool place three days, stirring thoroughly every 
morning. Measure the juice when you have strained it, 
and to every quart allow half an ounce of allspice, the same 
quantity of ginger, half a teaspoonfvil of powdered mace, a 
teaspoonful of cayenne. Put into a stone jai', cover closely, 
set in a saucepan of boiling water over the fire, and boil 
five hours hard. Take it off, empty into a porcelain ket- 
tle, and boil slowly half an hour longer. Let it stand all 
night in a cool place, until settled and clear. Pour off 



CATSUPS AND FLAVOEED VINEGAES. 195 

carefully from the sediment, and bottle, filling the flasks to 
the mouth. Dip the corks in melted rosin, and tie up with 
bladders. 

The bottles should be very small, as it soon spoils when 
exposed to the air. 

Imitation "Worcestersihee Sauce. 

3 teaspoonfuls cayenne pejjper. 

2 tablespoonfuls walnut or tomato catsup (strained 
through muslin). 

3 shallots minced fine. 

3 anchovies chopped into bits. 

1 quart of vinegar. 

Half-teaspoonful powdered cloves. 
Mix and rub through a sieve. Put in a stone jar, set 
in a pot of boiling water, and heat until the liquid is so hot 
you cannot bear your finger in it. Strain, and let it stand 
in the jar, closely covei-ed, two days, then bottle for use. 

Oyster Catsup. 

1 quart oysters. 

1 tablespoonful salt. 

1 teaspoonful cayenne pepper, and same of mace. 

1 teacupful cider vinegar. 

1 " sherry. 

Chop the oysters and boil in their own liquor with a 
teacupful vinegar, skimming the scum as it rises. Boil 
three minutes, strain through a hair-cloth ; return tho 
liquor to the fire, add the wine, pej)per, salt, and mace. 
Boil fifteen minutes, and, when cold, bottle for use, sealin^j 
the corks. 



196 COMMON SENSE. 

Tomato Catsup. »J« 

1 peck ripe tomatoes. 
1 ounce salt. 
1 " mace. 

1 tablespoonful black pepper. 
1 teaspoonful cayenne. 
1 tablespoonful cloves (powdered). 
7 " gi'ound mustard. 

1 " celery seed (tied in a tliin. muslin 

bag). 

Cut a slit in the tomatoes, put into a bell-metal or por- 
celain kettle, and boil until the juice is all extracted and 
the pulp dissolved. Strain and press through a cullender, 
then through a hair sieve. Return to the fii-e, add the sea- 
soning, and boil at least five hours, stirring constantly for 
the last hour, and frequently throughout the time it is on 
the fire. Let it stand twelve hours in a stone jar on the 
cellar floor. "When cold, add a pint of strong vinegar. 
Take out the bag of celery seed, and bottle, sealing the 
corks. Keep in a dark, cool place. 

Tomato and walnut are the most useful catsups we have 
for general purposes, and either is in itself a fixie sauce for 
roast meat, cold fowl, game, etc. 

Lemon Catsup. 

12 large, fresh lemons. 
4 tablespoonfuls white mustard-seed. 
1 " turmeric. 

1 " white pepper. 

1 teaspoonful cloves. 
1 " mace. 

1 saltspoonfiil cayenne. 



CATSUPS AUD FLAVOKED VINEGAES. 107 

2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 

2 " grated liorse-radish. 

1 sliallot, minced fine. 
Juice of the lemons. 

2 tablespoonfuls table-salt. 

Grate the rind of the lemons; pound or grind the 
spices, and put all together, including the horse-radish. 
Strew the salt over all, add the lemon-juice, and let it 
stand three hours in a cool place. Boil in a porcelain ket- 
tle half an hour. Pour into a covered vessel — china or 
stone — and let it stand a fortnight, stirring well every day. 
Then strain, bottle, and seal. 

It is a fine seasoning for fish sauces, fish soups, and 
game ragouts. 

" Ever-ready " Catsup, i^ 

2 quarts cider vinegar. 
12 anchovies, washed, soaked, and pulled to pieces. 
12 small onions, peeled and minced. 

1 tablespoonful mace. 



3 




fine salt. 


3 




white sugar. 


1 




cloves. 


3 




whole black pepper. 


2 




ground ginger. 


1 




cayenne. 



1 quart mushrooms, minced, or 
1 " ripe tomatoes, sliced. 

Put into a preserving kettle and boil slowly foxtr hours, 
or until the mixture is reduced to one-half the original quan- 
tity. Strain through a flannel bag. Do not bottle until 
next day. Fill the flasks to the top, and dip the corks in 
beeswax and rosin. 



198 COMMON SENSE. 

ITiis catsup will keep for years. Mixed witli drawn 
butter, it is used as a sauce for boiled fisb, but is a fine 
flavoring essence of gi-avies of almost any kind. 

A Good Store Sauce. 

2 tablespoonfuls horse-radisb (grated). 

1 " allspice. 
A grated nutmeg. 

3 large pickled onions (minced fine). 

2 dozen whole black peppers. 
A pinch of cayenne. 

1 tablespoonful salt. 

1 " white sugar. 

1 quart vinegar from walnut or butternut pickle. 

Mix all the spices well together; crush in a stone jar 
with a potato-beetle or billet of wood ; pour over the vine- 
gar, and let it stand two weeks. Put on in a porcelain or 
clean bell-metal kettle and heat to boiling ; strain and set 
aside until next day to cool and settle. Bottle and cork 
very tightly. It is an excellent seasoning for any kind of 
gravy, sauce, or stew. 

Mock Capers. *^ 

Gather green nasturtium seed when they are full-gi'own, 
but not yellow ; dry for a day in the sun ; put into small 
jars or wide-mouthed bottles, cover with boiling vinegar, 
slightly spiced, and when cool, cork closely. In six weeka 
they will be fit for use. They give an agreeable taste to 
drawn butter for fish, or boiled beef and mutton 

Celery Vinegar. 

A bunch of fresh celery, or 

A quarter of a pound of celery seed. 



CATSTIPS AJSro FLAVORED VINEGARS. 199 

1 quart of best vinegar. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

1 tablespoonful wliite sugar. 

Cut up the celery into small bits, or pour tbe seed into 
a jar ; scald the salt and vinegar, and poui* over the celery 
stalks or seed ; let it cool, and put away in one large jar 
tightly corked. In a fortnight strain and bottle in small 
flasks, corking tightly. 

Onion Yinegar. 

6 large onions. 

1 tablespoonful salt. 

1 " " white sugar. 

1 quart best vinegar. 

Mince the onions, strew on the salt, and let them stand 
five or six hours. Scald the vinegar in which the sugar 
has been dissolved, pour over the onions ; put in a jar, tie 
down the cover, and steep a fortnight. Strain and bottle. 

Elberberry Catsup. 

1 quart of elderberries. 

1 " of vinegar. 

6 anchovies, soaked and pulled to pieces. 
Half a teaspoonful mace. 
A pinch of ginger. 

2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

1 tablespoonful whole peppers. 

Scald the vinegar and pour over the berries, which 
must be picked from the stalks and put into a large stone 
jar. Cover with a pane of glass, and set in the hot sun 
two days. Strain off the liquor, and boil up with the 



200 COMMON SENSE. 

other ingredients, stirring often, one hour, keeping covered 
unless while stii-ring. Let it cool ; strain and bottle. 

This is used for flavoring brown gravies, soups, and 
ragouts, and, stirred into browned butter, makes a good 
piquant sauce for broiled or baked fish. 

Pepper Vinegar. 

6 pods red peppers broken up. 
3 dozen black pepper-corns. 
2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 
1 quart of best vinegai*. 

Scald the vinegar in which the sugar has been dis- 
solved ; pour over the pepper, put into a jar, and steej) a 
fortnight. Strain and bottle. 

This, is eaten with boiled fish and raw oysters, and is 
useful in the preparation of salads. 

Horse-radish Vinegar. 

6 tablespoonfuls scraped or grated horse-radish. 
1 tablespoonful white sugar. 
1 quart vinegar. 

Scald the vinegar ; pour boiling hot over the horse- 
radish. Steep a week, strain and bottle. 

SALADS. 

" The dressing of the salad should be saturated with 
oil, and seasoned with pepper and salt before the vinegar 
is added. It results from this process that there never can 
be too much vinegar ; for, from the specific gravity of the 
vinegar compared with oil, what is more than useful will 
fall to the bottom of the bowl. The salt should not be 
dissolved in the vinegar, but in the oil, by which means it 



SALADS. 201 

is more equally distributed throughout the salad." — Chap' 
tcU, a French chemist. 

The Spanish proverb says, that " to make a perfecrt 
salad, there should be a miser for oil, a spendthrift for 
vinegar, a wise man for salt, and a madcap to stir the in- 
gredients up and mix them well together." 

Sydney Smith's Receipt for Salad Dressing. 

Two boiled potatoes, strained through a kitchen 

sieve, 
Softness and smoothness to the salad give ; 
Of mordant mustard take a single spoon — 
Distrust the condiment that bites too soon ; 
Yet deem it not, thou man of taste, a fault. 
To add a double quantity of salt. 
Four times the spoon with oil of Lucca crown, 
And twice with vinegar procured from town ; 
True taste requires it, and your poet begs 
The pounded yellow of two well-boiled eggs. 
Let onions' atoms lurk within the bowl. 
And, scarce suspected, animate the whole ; 
And lastly, in the flavored compound toss 
A magic sjjoonful of anchovy sauce. 
Oh, gi*eat and glorious ! oh, herbaceous meat ! 
'Twould tempt the dying anchorite to eat. 
Back to the woi*ld he'd turn his weary soul, 
And plunge his fingers in the salad bowl. 

At least twenty-five years ago I pasted the above dog- 
gerel in my scrap-book, and committed it to memory. The 
fii-st salad I was ever trusted to compound was dressed in 
strict obedience to the directions of the witty divine, and 
to this day these seem to me pertinent and worthy of note. 
The anchovy sauce can be omitted if you like, and a spoon< 
9* 



202 COMMON SENSE. 

fill of Harvey's or "Worcestershire substituted. TMs is 
best suited for chicken or turkey salad. 

Lobster Salad, i^ 

Pick out every bit of the meat from the body and clawa 
of a cold boiled lobster. Lay aside the coral for the dress- 
ing, and mince the rest. For the dressing you will need — • 

4 eggs, boiled hard. 

2 tablespoonfuls salad oil. 

1 teaspoonful made mustard. 

1 " salt. 

2 " white sugar. 

•|- " cayenne pepper. Yinegar at discretion. 

1 " of Harvey's, Worcestershire, or anchovy 

sauce. 

Rub the yolks to a smooth paste in a mortar or bowl, 
with a "Wedgewood pestle, a silver or wooden spoon, until 
perfectly free from lumps. Add gi-adually, rubbing all the 
while, the other ingredients, the coral last. This should 
have been worked well upon a plate with a silver knife or 
wooden spatula. Proceed slowly and carefully in the opera- 
tion of amalgamating the various ingredients, moistening 
with vinegar as they stiffen. Increase the quantity of this 
as the mixture grows smooth, until it is thin enough to 
pour over the minced lobster. You will need a teacupful 
at least. Then stir long and well, that the meat may be 
thoroughly impregnated with the dressing. Sorae mix 
chopped lettuce with the salad ; but unless it is to be eaten 
within a few minutes, the vinegar will wither the tender 
leaves. The better plan is to heap a glass dish with the 
inner leaves of several lettuce-heads, laying pounded ice 
among them, and pass with the lobster, that the guests may 
add the green salad to their taste. 



SALADS. 203 

When lettuce is out of season, the following dressing, 
the receipt for which was given me by a French gourmand, 
may be used. 

Prepare the egg and coral as above, with the condiments 
there mentioned, but mix with the lobster-meat fovir table- 
spoonfuls of fine white cabbage, chopped small, with two 
small onions, also minced into almost indivisible bits, a 
teaspoonful of anchoAy or other sauce, and a tablespoonful 
of celery vinegar. 

All lobster salad should be eaten as soon as possible 
after the dressing is added, else it becomes imwholesome. 
If you use canned lobster, open and turn out the contents 
of the can into a china dish several hours before you mix 
the dressing, that the close, airless smell may pass away. 

Garnish the edges of the dish with cool white leaves of 
curled lettuce, or with a chain of rings made of tlie whites 
of the boiled eggs. 

Chicken Salad, t^ 
The white meat of a cold boiled or roasted chicken 

(or turkey). 
Three-quarters the same bulk of chopped celery. 

2 hard-boiled eggs. 

1 raw egg, well beaten. 
1 teaspoonful of salt. 
1 " pepper. 

1 " made mustard. 

3 " salad oil. 

2 " white sugar. 
■| teacupful of vinegar. 

Mince the meat well, removing every scrap of fat, gris- 
tle, and skin ; cut the celery into bits half an inch long, or 
less, mix them, and set aside in a cold place while you pre- 
pare the di'essing. 



204 COMMON SENSE. 

Rub tlie yolks of tlie eggs to a fine powder, add the salt, 
pepper, and sugar, then the oil, grinding hard, and putting in 
but a few drojDS at a time. The mustard comes next, and lei 
all stand together while you whip the raw egg to a froth 
Beat this into the dressing, and pour in the vinegar spoon 
ful by spoonful, whipping the "dressing well as you do it. 
Sprinkle a little dry salt over the meat and celery ; toss it 
up lightly with a silver . fork ; pour the dressing over it, 
tqssiug afid mixing until the bottom of the mass is as well 
saturated as tlie top ; lurn into the salad-bowl, and garnish 
with white .of eggs (boiled) cut into rings or flowers, and 
sprigs of bleachetl celery-tops. 

If you cannot get celery, substitute crisp white cabbage, 
and use celery vinegar in the dressing. You can also, in 
this case, chop spme green pickles, gherkins, mangoes, or 
cucumbers, and stir in. 

Turkey makes even better salad than chicken. 

You can make soup of the liquor in which the fowl is 
cooked, since it need not be boiled in a cloth. 

Lettuce Salad. »J« , 

Two or three heads white lettuce. 

2 hard-boiled eggs. 

2 teaspoonfuls salad oil. 

i " salt. ' 

1 " white siigar. - ■ 

•^ " made mustard. 

1 " pepper. 

4 tablespoonfuls vinegar. 
Rub the yolks to a powder, add sugar, pepper, salt, 
mustard, and oil. Let it stand five minutes, and beat in tlie 
vinegar. Cut the lettuce up with a knife and fork, — a 
chopper would bruise it, — put into a bowl, add the dressing, 
and mix by tossing with a silver fork. 



. __ SALADS. 205 

Or, 

You can dress on the table with oil and vinegar only, 
pulling the heart of the -lettuce out with your fingers, and 
seasoning to taste. 

Summer Salad. 

3 heads of lettuce. 

2 teaspoonfuls green mustard leaves. 
A handful of water-cresses. 

Four or five very tender radishes. . 
. 1 cucumber. 

3 hard-boiled eggs. 

2 teaspoonfuls white sugar. ■ ' • ■ 

1 teaspoonful salt. • 

1 " pepper. 

1 "' made mustard. 

1 teacupful vijiegar. 

2 tablespoonfttls salad oil, 

Mix the dressing as for lettuce salad. Cut up the hearts ' 
of the lettuce, the radishes and cucumber, into very small 
pieces \ chop the mustard and cress. Pour over these the 
dressing, tossing very lightly, not to bruise the young leaves ; 
heap in a salad-bowl upon a lump of ice, and garnish with, 
fennel-heads and nastui'tium-blossoms. 

This is a delightful accompaniment to boiled or baked 
fish. 

"Water-Cresses. 

"Wash and pick over the crcjsses carefully, pluck frgm 
the stems, and pile in the salad bowl, with a dressing of 
vinegar, popper, salt, and sugar, well stirred in. 



« 

206 COMMON SENSE, 

Cabbage Salad, or Cold Slaw. *^ 

1 head of fine white cabbage, minced fine. 
3 hard-boiled eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls salad oil. 
2 teaspoonfuls white sugar. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

1 " pepper. 

1 " made mustard. 

1 teacupful \'inegar. 

Mix as for lettuce and pour upon the chopped cabbagei 

Or, 4« 

Shred the head of cabbage fine, and dx'ess with — 
1 cup vinegar. 
1 tablesjioonful butter. 

1 sugar. 

2 tablespoonfuls sour cream. 

A pinch of pepper, and the same of salt. 

Put the vinegar, with all the ingredients for the dress- 
ing, except the cream, in a saucepan, and let them come 
to a boil. Pour while scalding over the cabbage, and 
set away until perfectly cold. Add the cream just before 
serving, stirring in with a silver fork. 

This is a very nice preparation of cabbage, and far more 
wholesome than the uncooked. Try it ! 

Tomato Salad. »J« 

12 medium-sized tomatoes, peeled and sliced. 

4 hard-boiled eggs. 

1 raw egg, well beaten. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

■!^ spoonful cayenne pepper. 



SALADS. 20? 

1 teaspoonful while sugar. 

1 tablespoonful salad oil. 

2 teaspoonfuls made mustard. 
1 teacupful vinegar. 

Rub the yolks to a smooth paste, adding by degrees tho 
Bait, pepper, sugar, mustard, and oil. Beat the raw egg to 
a froth and stir in, — lastly the vinegar. Peel the tomatoes, 
slice them a quarter of an inch thick, and set the dish on 
ice, while you are making ready the dressing. Stir a great 
lump of ice rapidly in this — the dressing — until it is cold ; 
take it out, cover the tomatoes with the mixture, and set 
back on the ice until you send to table. 

This salad is delicious, especially when ice-cold. 

Celery Salad. »J* 

1 boiled egg. 

1 raw egg. 

1 tablespoonful salad oil. 

1 teaspoonful white sugar. 

1 saltspoonful salt. 

1 " pepper. 

4 tablespoonfuls vinegar. 

1 teaspoonful made mustard. 

Prepare the dressing as for tomato salad ; cut the celery 
into bits half an inch long, and season. Eat at once, befora 
the vinegar injures the crispness of the vegetable. 

Salmon Salad, i^ 

1-| lb. cold boiled or baked salmon, 

2 heads white lettuce (or celery). 

3 hard-boiled eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls salad oil. 



208 COMMON BEN8E. 

1 teaspoonful salt, and same of cayenne. 

i " white sugar. 

1 " Worcestershire or anchovy sauce. 

1 " made mustard. 

1 teacupf ul vinegar. 

Mince three-quarters of the salmon, laying aside four or 
five pieces half an inch wide and four or five long; cut 
smoothly and of uniform size. Prepare the dressing in the 
usual way, and pour over the minced fish. Shred the let- 
tuce, handling as little as possible, and heap in a separate 
howl, with pounded ice. This must accompany the salmon, 
that the guests may help themselves to their liking. Or 
you may mix the lettuce with the fish, if it is to be eaten 
immediately. Celery, of course, is always stirred into the 
salad, when it is used. The reserved pieces of salmon 
should be laid in the dressing for five minutes before 
the latter is added to the minced fish, then dipped in 
vinegar. When you have transferred your salad (or ma- 
yonnaise) to the dish in which it is to be served, round it 
into a mound, and lay the strips upon it in such a manner 
as to divide it into triangular sections, the bars all meeting 
at the top and diverging at the base. Between these have 
subdivisions of chain-work made of the whites of the boiled 
eggs, each circle overlapping that next to it. 

You can dress halibut in the same way. 

Cheese, Salad, or Mock Crab, 

^ lb. pickled shrimps. 

^ lb. good old cheese. 

1 tablespoonful salad oil. 

1 teaspoonful cayenne pepper. 

1 « salt. 

1 " white sugar. 



BALAD3. 209 

1 teaspoonful made mustard. 

4 tablespoonfuls celery or onion vinegar. 

Mince the shrimps and grate the cheese. Work into 
the latter, a little at a time, the various condiments enu- 
merated above, the vinegar last. Let all stand together ten 
minutes before adding the shrimps. When this is done, 
stir well for a minute and a half and serve in a glass dish, 
garnished with lemon, or (if you can get one) in a clean 
crab-shell. 

^- lb. old cheese, grated. 

1 hard-boiled egg. 

1 teaspoonful cayenne. 

1 " salt. 

1 " white sugar. 

1 " made mustard, 

1 tablespoonful onion vinegar. 

1 *' salad oil. 

Eub the yolk of the egg to a paste with the oil, adding 
in order the salt, pepper, sugar, and mustard, lastly the 
cheese. Work all well together before putting in the 
vinegar. Serve in a crab-shell. 

These mixtures bear a marvellous resemblance in taste 
to devilled ci-ab, and make a good impromptu relish at tea 
or luncheon. Eat with crackers and butter. This is still 
better if you add a cupful of cold minced chicken. 

Use none but the best and freshest olive salad oil {not 
sweet oil, falsely so called) in compounding your salad- 
dressing. If you cannot obtain t'ais, melted butter is the 
best substitute I know of. 



210 COMMON SENSE. 

VEGETABLES. 

Rules Applicable to the Cooking op all Vegetables. 

1. Have them as fresli as possible. Stale and withered 
ones ai-e unwholesome and unjialatable. Summer vegeta- 
bles should be cooked on the same day they are gathered, if 
possible. 

2. Pick over and wash well, cutting out all decayed or 
unripe parts. 

3 Lay them, when peeled, in cold water for some time 
before cooking. 

4. If you boil them, put a little salt in the water. 

5. Cook them steadily after you put them on. 

6. Be sure they are thoroughly done. Rare vegetables 
are neither good nor fashionable. 

7. Drai7i well. 

8. Serve hot ! 

POTATOES. 

Boiled Potatoes {with the skins on). 

Boil in cold water with a pinch of salt. Have them of 
uniform size, and cook steadily until a fork will pierce easily 
to the heart of the largest. Then pour off the water, every 
drop; sprinkle with salt and set back on the range, a little 
to one side, with the lid of the pot oif. Let them dry three 
or four minutes; peel very quickly and serve in an im- 
covered dish. 

Without the Skins. 

Pare very thin. The glory of a potato is its mealiness, 
and much of the starch, or meal, lies next the skin — conse- 
quently is lost by slovenly paring, which likewise defaces 
the shape. Lay in cold water for half an hour, have ready 
a pot of boiling water slightly salted, drop in the potatoes, 



POTATOES. 211 

and keep at a rapid boil until tender. Drain off tlie water^ 
sijrinkle with fine salt, and dry as just directed. 

And here comes a conflict of authorities. Says my kind 
friend and neighbor, Mrs. A., an excellent housewife — " I 
boil my potatoes in cold water always, — with a pinch of 
salt, of course, and when half done, throw away the boiling 
water and fill up with cold, then boil again. This makes 
the potatoes mealy." Mrs. B., whose reputation as a house- 
keeper and cook is in every kitchen, interposes : — " I have 
tried both ways. My experience is that potatoes melt into 
a sort of starchy gruel when boiled in cold water. The 
philosophy of the operation is to heat quickly and thor- 
oughly, and, the instant they are done, to dry out every 
drop o*^ water. And — " with a touch of pardonable pride — 
" we generally have delightful potatoes." This is true, but 
remembering that Mrs. A.'s are like snow hillocks, ready to 
crumble at a breath, I come home and try the cold water 
plan. My cook, unlike most of her tribe, is too sensible to 
suppose that she knows everything, and willingly abets me. 
The result of our experiments stands somewhat thus — Gar- 
net, White Mountain, and Early Rose potatoes are apt to 
dissolve in cold water, giving off their starch too readily, 
perhaps. AVe boil them in hot water. Peach Blows, Prince 
Alberts, and other late varieties are best cooked as Mrs. A. 
recommends — always pouring off the water the instant 
they are done and letting the potatoes dry for a few minutes. 
My housewifely friends can decide for themselves which 
method is preferable. 

Mashed Potatoes. ^ 

Old potatoes are best mashed. Pai-e, and let them lie 
in cold water from half to three-quarters of an hour. A 
longer time will not hurt them. Boil in hot or cold water 
according to the toughness of textiu-e. A coarse, waxy 



212 COMMON BEN8E. 

potato is best cooked in cold water. In either case, put in 
a pincli of salt. Drain thoroughly when done, sprinkle 
with salt, and mash them in the pot with a potato-beetle, 
working in a tablespoonful of butter and enough milk to 
make the paste aljout the consistency of soft dough. Lfeave 
no lumps in it, and when smooth, dish. Form into a mound 
with a wooden spoon, and leave dots of, pepper here and 
thcFe on the sia-face, as large as a half-dime. 

Or, 

Brown by setting m the oven \intil a crust is formed. 
Glaze this with butter, and serve. ,• 

To. Boil New Potatoes. 

If very young, rub the skin oflF with a rough towel. If 
almost ripe, scrape with a blunt knife. Lay in cold water 
an hour, cover with cold water slightly salted, boil half an 
hour. Drain, salt, and dry for two or three minutes. Send 
to table plain. 

Or, 

You may crack each by pressing lightly upon it with 
the back of a wooden spoon, lay them in a deep dish, and 
pour over them a cupful of cream or new milk, heated to a 
boil, in which a great spoonful of butter has been dissolved. 

To Stew Old Potatoes. ^ 

Tliis is a good way to cook potatoes which are so rank 
and tough as hardly to be eatable in any other form. 

Pare and quarter, if large. Soak in cold water one 
hour. Put into a pot with enough cold salted water to 
cover them. When almost done, turn off the water, add a 
like quantity of milk, and bring to a boil. Before taking 
up, stir in a heaping tablespoonful of butter, a little salt, a 



POTATOES. 213 

handful of chopped parsley, and thicken slightly with flour 
previously wet in cold milk. Boil one minute, and pour all 
into a deep dish. 

. Stewed Potatoes for Breakfast. »J« 

Pare, quarter, and soak in cold water half an hour. 
Btew in enough cold salted water to cover them. Before 
taking vip, and when they are breaking to pieces, drain olf 
half the water, and pour in a cvipful of milk. Boil three 
minutes, stirring well ; put in a lump of butter the size of 
an egg, a little salt and a pinch of pepper ; thicken slightly 
with flour, boil up well and turn into a covered dish. 

This is an excellent family dish. Cliildren are usually 
fond of it, and it is very wholesome. 

Baked Potatoes. 

"Wash and wipe some large ripe potatoes, and bake in a 
quick oven untU tender, say from three-quarters of an hour 
to an hour, if of a good size. Serve in a napkin with the 
skins on. Tear or cut a hole in the top when you eat them, 
put in -a bit of biitter with salt and pepper. They are good 
for boys' cold fingers at supper-time on winter nights 

Potato Puff. »J« 

Take two cupfuls of cold mashed potato, and stir into 
it two tablespoonfuls of melted butter, beating to a white 
cream before adding anything else. Then put with this 
two eggs whipped very light and a teacupful of cream or 
milk, salting to taste. Beat all well, pour into a deep dish, 
and bake in a quick oven until it is nicely browned. If 
properly mixed, it ^oll come out of the oven light, pnfly,^^ 
and delectable. 



214 COMMON SENSE. 

Potatoes "Warmed Over — alias au Jfaitre (THoiel. 

Slice cold boiled potatoes a quarter of an inch thick 
and put into a saucepan with four or five tablespoonfuls ol 
milk, two or three of butter, pepper, salt, and some chopped 
parsley. Heat quickly, stirring all the time until ready to 
lioil, when stir in the juice of half a lemon. This last in- 
gredient entitles the dish to the foreign title. Pour into a 

deep dish, and serve very hot. 

* 

Potato Croquettes, i^ 

Season cold mashed potato with pepper, salt, and nut- 
meg. Beat to a cream, with a tablespoonful of melted but- 
ter to every cupful of potato. Bind with two or three 
beaten eggs, and add some minced parsley. Roll into oval 
balls, dip in beaten egg, then in bread-crumbs, and fry in 
hot lard or drippings. 

Pile in a pyramid upon a flat dish, and serve. 

Fried Potatoes, t^ 

Pare, wash, and slice some raw potatoes as thin as wa- 
fers. This can be done with a sharp knife, although there 
is a little instrument for the purjiose, to be had at the 
house-furnishing stores, which flutes prettily as well as 
slices evenly. Lay in ice-water for half an hour, wipe dry 
in two cloths, spreading them upon one, and pressing the 
other upon them. Have ready in the frying-j^an some boil- 
ing lard or nice dripping, fry a light brown, sprinkle with 
salt, and serve in a napkin laid in a deep dish and folded 
over the potatoes. To dry them of the fat, take from the 
frying-pan as soon as they are brown, with a perforated 
skimmer, put into a cullender and shake for an instant. 
They should be crisp and free from grease. 



POTATOES. 215 

Or, 
Chop cold boiled potatoes into bits, season with peppei 
and salt, and fry lightly in dripping or butter, turning them 
constantly until nicely browned. 

Potato Ribbon. 

Pare and lay in ice-water for an hour. Choose the 
largest and soundest potatoes you can get for this dish. At 
the end of the hour, pare, with a small knife, round and 
round in one continuous curling strip. There is also an in- 
strument for this purpose, which costs but a ti-ifle, and will 
do the work deftly and expeditiously. Handle with care, 
fry — a few at a time, for fear of entanglement — ^in lard or 
clarified drippings, drain, and arrange neatly upon a hot 
flat dish. 

Potatoes A la Cr6me. i>J« 

Put into a saucepan three tablespoonfu.ls of butter, a 
small handful of parsley chopped small, salt and pepper to 
taste. Stir up well until hot, add a small teacupful of cream 
or rich milk, thicken with two teaspoonfuls of flour, and 
stir until it boils. Chop some cold boiled potatoes, pvit into 
the mixture, and boil up once before serving. 

Stuffed Potatoes. »J* 

Take large, fair potatoes, bake until soft, and cut a 
round piece off the top of each. Scrape out the inside 
carefully, so as not to break the skin, and set aside the 
empty cases with the covers. Mash the inside very 
smoothly, working into it while hot some butter and cream 
— about half a teaspoonful of each for every potato. Sea- ^' 
son with salt and pepper, with a good pinch of grated 
cheese for each j work it very soft with milk, and put into 



216 COMMON SENSE. . 

a saucepan to heat, stirring, to prevent burning. Wlien 
scalding liot, stir in one well-beaten egg for -six large pota- 
toes. jBoil up once, fill tlie skins with the mixture, repla- 
cing the caps, return them to the" ovQn for three minutes ; 
arrange upon a napkin in a deep dish, the caps uppermost ; 
cover with a fold of the napkin, and eat hot. 

Or, 
You may omit the eggs and put in a double quantity of 
cheese. .They are very good. 

Potato Scallops. 

Boil, and mash the potatoes soft with a little milk. 
Beat up light with melted butter — a dessertspoonful for 
every half-pint of the potato — salt and pepper to taste* 
Fill some patty -pans or buttered scallop shells with the mix- 
ture, and brown in an oven, when you have stamj)ed a pat- 
tern on the toi") of each. Glaze, while hot, with butter, and 
serve in the shells. 

If you like, you can strew some grated cheese over the 
top# 

Broavned Potatoes — ( Whole). ■ 

Boil and peel some large, ripe j>otatoes, and three-quar- 
ters of an hour before a piece of roast beef is removed from 
the fire, skim the fat from the gravy; put the potatoes in 
the dripping-pan, having dredged them well with flour. 
Baste them, to prevent scorching, with the gi"avy, and 
when quite brown, drain on a sieve. Lay them about the 
meat in the dish, 

k Browned Potato — {3 fashed). 

This is also an accompaniment to roast beef or mutton. 
Mash some boiled potatoes smoothly with a little milk, pep- 



POTATOES. • 217 

per, salt, and a boiled onion (minced) ; make into small 
cones or balls ; flour well, and put under or beside tke 
meat, half an liour or so before you take it up. _ Skim off 
all the fat from the gravy before putting them in. Drain 
tliem dry when brown, and lay around the meat wheri 
dished. 

These are nice with roast spare-rib, or any I'oast j)ork 
that is not too fat. 

Broiled Potatoes. 

Cut whole boiled potatoes, lengthwise, into slices a 
quarter of an inch thick, and lay upon a gridiron over a 
hot, "bright fire. Brown on both sides, -sprinkle with pe})- 
per and salt, lay a bit of butter upon each, and eat very hot. 

Potato Cakes. 

Make cold mashed potato into flat cakes ; flour and fry 
in lard, or good sweet dripping, until they are a light-bro^^Ti. 

Roast Sweet PpTATOES. 

Select those of uniform size, wash, wipe, and roast un- 
til you can tell, by gently ^iressing the largest between the 
finger and thumb, that it is mellow throughout. Serve in 
their jackets. 

Sweet, as well as Irish jiotatoes, are very good for pic- 
nic luncheon, roasted in hot ashes. This, it will be remem- 
bered, was the dinner General Marion set before the Brit- 
ish officer as " quite a feast, I assure you, sir. We don't 
often fare so well as to have sweet potatoes and salt." 

The feast was cleansed from ashes by the negi-o orderly's 
shirt-sleeve, and served upon a natural trencher of pine-t 
bark. 

10 



218 COMMON SENSE. 

"Boiled Sweet P(>tatoe3. 

Have tliem all as nearly the same size as possible ; put 
into cold water, witlioiit any salt, and boil until a. fork will 
easily pierce the largest. Turn off the water, and lay them 
in the oven to dry for five minutes. Peel before sending 
to table. 

Or, 4- 

Parboil, and then roast until done. This is a wise plan 
when they are old and watery. Boiling is apt to render 
them tasteless. Another way still is to boil until they are 
almost done, when peel and bake brown, basting them with 
butter several times, but draining them dry before they go 
to the table. 

Fried Sweet Potatoes. *|« 

Parboil them, skin, and cut lengthwise into slices a 
quarter of an inch thick. Fry in sweet dripping or butter. 

Cold boiled potatoes may be cooked in this way. Or 
you can chop them up with an equal quantity of cold Irish 
potatoes, put them into a frying-pan with a good lump of 
butter, and stir until they are hot and slightly brown. 



CABBAGE. 

Boiled Cabbage. 

Pick off the outer gi'een leaves, quarter, examine care- 
fully to be siu'e there are no insects in it, and lay for an 
hour in cold water. Then put into a pot with plenty of 
boiling water, and cook fifteen minutes. Throw away the 
water, and fill up the pot from the boiling tea-kettle. Cook 
tmtil tender all through. Three-quarters of an hour will 
do for a good-sized cabbage when young. Late in the sea- 



CABBAGE.- '2\9 

son you must be gviided by tlie tenderness of the stallc 
Drain well, choji, and stii* in a tablespoonful of butter, pep- 
per, and salt. Serve very hot. li you boil corned beef or 
pork to eat with cabbage, let the second water be takec 
from the pot in which this is cooking. ' It will flavor i', 
nicely. 

Always boil cabbage in two waters. 

Bacox and Cabbage. 

This, I need hardly say, is a favorite country dish at 
the South. The old-fasliioned way of pi-eparing it was to 
boil meat and cabbage together, and serve, reeking with 
fat, the cabbage in quarters, soaking yet more of the essence 
from the ham or middling about which it lay. In this shape 
it justly earned a reputation for gi'ossness and indigestibility 
that banished it, in time, from many tables. 

Yet it is a savory and not unwholesome article of food in 
winter, if the cabbage be boiled in two waters, the second 
being the " pot-liquor" from the boiling meat. Drain thor- 
oughly in a cullender, pressing out every drop of water that 
will flow, without breaking the tender leaves; and when 
the meat is dished, lay the cabbage neatly about it, and upon 
ei^ch quarter a slice of hard-boiled egg. 

"When you eat, season with pepper, salt, and vinegar. 

Stuffed Cabbage. 

Choose for this purpose a large, firm cabbage. Take off 
the outer leaves, and lay in boiling water ten miniites, then 
in very cold. Do this several hours before you ai-e ready 
to stuff it. When perfectly cold, bind a broad tape about it, 
or a strip of muslin, that it may not fall apart when the 
stalk is taken out. Remove this with a thin sharp knife, 
leaving a hole about as deep as your middle-finger. Without 



220 COMMON SENSE. 

widening the mouth of the aperture, excavate the centre 
unt^ you have room for four or five tablespoonfuls of tho 
force-meat — more, if the head be large. Chop the hits you 
take out very small ; mix with some minced cold boiled pork 
or ham, -or cooked sausage-meat, a very little onion, pepper, 
salt, a pinch of thyme, and some bread-cruhabs. Fill the 
cavity with this, bind a wide strip of muslin over the hole iu 
the t i/p, anjl lay the, cabbage in a large saucepan with a pint 
of " pot-liquor " from boiled beef or ham. Stew gently 
until very tender. Take out the cabbage, unbind carefully, 
and lay in a dish. Keep hot while you add to the gravy, 
when you have strained it, pepper, a piece of butter rolled 
in flour, and two or three tablespoonfuls rich milk or cream. 
Boil xip, and pour over the cabbage. 

" COLLARDS," OR CaBBAGE-SpROUTS. 

Pick over carefully, lay in cold water, slightly salted, 
half an hour; shake in a cullender to drain, and put into 
boiling water, keeping at a fast boil until tender. A 
piece of pork seasons them pleasantly. In this case jjut 
the meat on first, adding the greens when it is parboiled, 
and cooking them together. Boil in an uncovered vessel. 
Drain very well; chop and heap in a dish, laying the meat 
on top. 

Ladies' Cabbage. «^ 

Boil a firm white cabbage fifteen minutes, changing the 
water then for moi'e from the boiling tea-kettle. When 
tender, drain and set aside until perfectly cold. Chop fine, 
and add two beaten eggs, a tablespoonful of butter, pepper, 
salt, three tablespoonfuls rich milk or cream. Stir all well 
together, and bake in a buttered pudding-dish until brown. 
Eat very hot. 

I can conscientiously recommend this dish even to thosa 



CABBAGE. 221 

who are not fond of any of the ordinaiy preparations of cab- 
bage. It is digestible and palatable, more nearly resem-' 
bluig cauliflower in taste than its coarser and coniiaoner 
cousin- 6^er7«.a) I. 

Fried Cabbage. 

Chop cold boiled cabbage, anil drain very dry, stirring 
in a little melted butter, pepper, and salt, with three or 
four tablespoonfuls of cream. Heat all in a buttered fry- 
ing-pan, stirring until smoking hot ; then lev the cnixture 
stand just long enough to brown slightly on the underside. 
It is improved by the addition of a couple of beaten eggs. 
Turn out by putting a flat dish above the pan, upside-down, 
and reversing the latter. 

This is a breakfast-dish. 

Sauerkraut. 

Shred or chop the cabbage fine. Line a barrel, keg, or 
jar with cabbage-leaves on the bottom and sides. Put in a 
layer of the cut cabbage, three inches in depth ; press, down 
well and sprinkle with four tablespoonfuls of salt. When 
you have packed five layers in this way, press hard with a 
board cut to fit loosely on the inside of the barrel or jar. 
Put heavy weights on this, or pound with a wooden beetle 
until the cabbage is a compact mass, when remove the board 
and 2>ut in more layers of salt and shred cabbage, repeating 
the pounding every four or five layers, until the vessel is 
full. Cover Avith leaves, and put the -board on the top of 
these with a heavy weight to keep it down. Set all away 
to ferment. In three weeks remove the scum, and if need 
be, cover with water. Keep in a cool dry cellar. It can be 
eaten raw or boiled, and seasoned with poi'k. 

This is the mode sim2yle if not ^:)?tr of preparing this, to 
nostrils unaccustomed to ir, malodorous compound. Soma 



222 COMMON SE^'SE. 

add to the salt wliole black peppers, cloves, gai-lic, and mace 
— " then put it away," as a mild, motherly Teuton dame 
once told me, " in the cellar to r — " — " Rot ! " interpolated a 
disgusted bystander, anticipating her deliberate utterance. 
*' No, my dear," drawled the placid Frau, " to ripen.^'' 



CAULIFLOWER. 

Boiled Cauliflower. 

Pick off the leaves and cut the stalk close to the bottom 
of the bunch of flowers. Lay in cold water for half an 
liour. Unless very large, do not cut it ; if you do, quarter 
it neatly. Tie a close net of coarse bobbinet lace or tarla- 
tan about it to prevent breaking or bruising; put into 
boiling water salted, and cook vmtil tender. Undo and re- 
move the net, and lay the cauliflower in a hot dish. Have 
ready a large cupful of nice drawn butter and pour over it. 

Cut with a silver knife and fork in helping it out, and 
give a little of the sauce to each person. Take it out of the 
water as soon as it is done, serve quickly, and eat hot. It 
darkens wdth standing. 

Stewed Cauliflower. 
Use for this dish the smaller and more indifferent cauli- 
flowers. Cut them into small clusters ; lay in cold salt and 
water half an hour, and stew fifteen minutes in boiling 
water. Turn most of this off, leaving but half a teacupful 
in the saucepan. Add to this a half-cupful of milk thick- 
ened with a very little rice or wheat flour, and two table- 
spoonfuls of melted bxitter, peppei", and salt. Shake the 
saucepan over the fire gently until it boils ; take out the 
cauliflowers with a perforated skimmer, lay in order upon a 
dish, and pour the sauce over them. 



vegetables. 223 

Scalloped Cauliflower. 

Boil until tender, clip into neat clusters, and pack — the 
stems downward^-in a buttered pudding- dish. Beat up a 
cupful of bread-crumbs to a soft paste with two tablespoon- 
fuls of melted butter and three of cream or milk ; season 
with pepper and salt, bind with a beaten egg, and with thia 
cover the cauliflower. Cover the dish closely and bake six 
minutes in a qiiick oven ; brown in five more, and serve 
very hot in the dish in which they were baked. 

Broccoli and Brussels Sprouts. 

Pick over, wash carefully, cut off the lower part of the 
stems and lay in cold water, slightly salted, half an hour. 
Cook quickly in boiling water, with a little salt, until tender. 
This will be in twelve or fifteen minutes. Cook in an un- 
covered saucepan. Drain well, l&y in a neat pile lightly 
heaped in the centre of a dish, and pour drawn butter over 
them, or serve this in a tureen. 

Broccoli and Eggs. 

Boil two or three heads of broccoli until tender. Have 
ready two cupfuls of butter drawn in the usual way, and 
beat into it, while hot, four well-whipped eggs. Lay but- 
tered toast in the bottom of a hot dish, and on this the 
largest head of broccoli whole, as a centre-piece. Arrange 
close about this the others cut into clusters, the stems 
downward, and poiu- the egg-sauce over all. 

Mashed Turnips. 

Peel and lay in cold water, slightly salted, until the 
water boils in the saucepan intended for them. Put them 
in and boil until very tender. The time will depend upon 
their age. Drain and mash in the cullender with a wooden 



224 COMMON SENSE. 

spoon, stirring in at the last a tablespoonful of butter, 
with pepper and salt to taste, and serve hot. 

If eaten with boiled corned beef, you may take a little 
of the liquor from the pot in which the meat is cooking ; 
put it into a saucepan, boil up once to throw oft' tho 
scum, skim clean, and cook the turnips in this. 

Or, 

If the turnips are young, rub them when tender through 
the cullender; add a little milk, biitter, pepper, and salt; 
heat to boiling in a clean saucepan, and serve. 

Young Turnips Boiled Whole. 

Pare smoothly, and trim" all into the same size and 
shape. Lay in cold water half an hour. Put on in boiling 
water, with a tablespoonful of butter, and stew until tender. 
Drain dry, without crushing or breaking them ; pile in a 
deep dish, and cover with a white sauce made of butter 
drawn in milk. Turnips should be eaten very hot always. 

Boiled Spinach. 

In respect to quantity, spinach is desperately deceitful. 
I never see it drained after it is boiled without bethinking 
myself of a picture I saw many years since, illustrative of 
the perils of innocent simplicity. A small (lucky) boy and 
big (unlucky) one have been spending their holiday in fish- 
ing. While the former, well satisfied with the result of his 
day's .iport, is busy putting up his rod and tackle, the de- 
signing elder dexterously substitxites his own string of min- 
notvs for the other's store of fine perch. The little fellow, 
turning to pick it up, without a suspicion of the cruel cheat, 
makes piteous round eyes at his fellow, ejaculating, "How 
they have swhrunk ! " 

A young housekeeper of my acquaintance, ordering a 



VEGETABLES. 225 

spriug dinner for herself and husband, jnirchased a quart 
of sjsinach. When it should have ajjpeared upon the table, 
there came in its stead a platter of sliced egg, she having 
given out one for the dressing. " Where is the spinach ? " 
she demanded of the maid of all work. " Under the egg, 
ma'am ! " And it was really all there. 

Moral. — Get enough spinach to be visible to the naked 
eye. A peck is not too much for a family of four or five. 

Pick it over very carefully ; it is apt to be gritty. 
Wash in several waters, and let it lie in the last half an 
hour at least. Take out with your hands, shaking each 
bunch well, and put into boiling water, with a little salt. 
Boil from fifteen to twenty minutes. When tender, drain 
thoroughly, chop very fine ; put into a saucepan with a 
piece of butter the size of an egg, and pepper to taste. Stir 
until very hot, turn into a dish and shape into a flat-topped 
mound with a silver or wooden spoon ; slice some hard- 
boiled eggs and lay on top. 

Or, 
Rub the yolks of the eggs to a powder ; mix with butter, 
and when your mound is raised, sj^read smoothly over the 
flat top. Fovir eggs will dress a good-sized dish. Cut the 
whites into rings and garnish, lajdng them on the yellow 
surface. This makes a pleasant dressing for the spinach. 

Spinach A la Creme. 
Boil and chop very fine, or rub through a cullender. 
Season with pepjier and salt. Beat in, while warm, three 
tablespoonfuls melted butter (this is for a large dish). Put 
into a saucepan and heat, stirring constantly. When smok- 
ing hot, add three tablespoonfuls of cream and a teaspoonful 
wlute sugar. Boil up once, still stirring, and press fii-mly 
into a hot bowl or other mould. Turn into a hot dish and 
garnish with boiled eggs. 
10* 



226 common sense. 

Green Peas. 

Shell and lay iu cold water until you are ready to coo^ 
them. Put into salted boiling watei', and cook from twen- 
ty minutes to half an hour. If young and fresh, the short- 
er time will suffice. If just gathered from your own vinea 
and tender, season only with salt. Market peas are greatly 
improved by the addition of a small lump of white sugar. 
It improves taste and color. The English always put it in, 
also a sprig of mint, to be removed when the peas are 
dished. Drain well, and dish, with a great lump of Butter 
stirred in, and a little pepper. Keep hot. 

Pea Fritters or Cakes, i^ 

Cook a pint or three cuj^s more peas than you need for 
dinner. Mash while hot with a wooden spoon, seasoning 
with pepper, salt, and butter. Pat by until morning. Make 
a batter of two whipped eggs, a cupful of milk, quarter tea- 
spoonful soda, a half teaspoonful cream tartar, and half a 
cup of flour. Stir the pea-mixture into this, beating very 
hard, and cook as you would ordinary griddle-cakes. 

I can testify, from experience, that they make a delight- 
ful morning dish, and hei-eby return thanks to the unknown 
friend to whom I am indebted for the receipt. 

Asparagus {boiled). 

Cut your stalks of equal length, rejecting the woody or 
lower portions, and scraping the white part which remains. 
Thi'ow into cold water as you scrape them. Tie in a bunch 
with soft strings — muslin or tape — and jiut into boiling 
■water slightly salted. If very young and fresh, it is well 
to tie in a piece of coarse net to protect the tops. Boil 
from twenty to forty minutes, according to the age. Just 
before it is done, toast two or three slices of bread, cutting 



VEGETABLES. 227 

off lLo v^rtist ; dip in the asparagus liquor, butter, aud la^ 
in a hot dish. When you take off the asparagus, drain, un- 
bind the bundle, and heap it upon the toast, Avdth bits of 
butter between the stalks. 

Asparagus and Eggs. 

Cut twenty-five or thirty heads of asparagus into bita 
half an inch long, tnd boil fifteen minutes. Have a cup- 
ful of rich drawn butter in a saucepan, and put in the as- 
paragus when you have drained it dry. Heat together to 
a boil, seasoning with pepper and salt, and pour into a but- 
tered bake-dish. Break five or six eggs carefully over the 
surface ; put a bit of butter upon each ; sprinkle with salt, 
and pepper, aud put in the oven until the eggs are set. 

You may beat the eggs — yolks and whites separately — • 
to a froth ; season with butter, pepper, and salt ; stir them 
together, with the addition of three tablespoonfuls of milk 
or cream, and pour evenly over the asparagus mixture in 
the dish. This is decidedly the better way of the two, 
although somewhat more troublesome. 

Asparagus in Ambush. »J« 

Cut off the tender tops of fifty heads of asjiaragus ; boil 
and drain thera. Have ready half a dozen (or more) stale 
biscidt or rolls, from which you have cut a neat top slice 
and scraped out the crumb. Set them in the oven to crisp, 
laying the tops beside them that the cavities may be well 
dried. Meanwhile, put into a saucepan a sugai'less custard 
made of a pint — if you need so much — of milk, and four 
well-whipped eggs. Boil tlie milk fii-st, before beatiug in 
the eggs; set over the fire and stir until it thickens, when 
add a great spoonful of butter, a little salt and pepper ; 



228 COMMON SEKSE. 

lastly the asparagus tops, minced fine. Do not let it boil, 
but take from the fii'e so soon as the asparagus is fairly iii'} 
fill the roils with the mixture, put on the tops, fitting them 
accurately ; set in the oven three minutes, and arrange on 
a dish, to be eaten hot. 

The number of rolls will depend upon their size. It ia 
better to have them small, so that one can be served to each 
person. They will be found extremely bice. 

Boiled Onions. 

Cut off tops and tails, and skin them. Lay in cold 
water half an hour, then put into a saucepan with enough 
boiling water to cover them. Cook fifteen minutes and 
drain off the water, re-covering them with more from the 
boiling tea-kettle. Boil until a straw will pierce them ; 
drain and -put into a dish with pepper, salt, and plenty of 
butter. Send around drawn butter with them. Never cook 
onions in an iron pot. 

Stewed Onions. »{« 

Young onions should always be cooked in this way: 
Top, tail, and skin them, lay them in cold water half an hour 
or more, then put into a saucepan with hot water enough 
to cover them. When half done, throw off all the water, 
except a small teacupful — less, if your mess is small ; add 
a like quantity of milk, a great spoonful of butter, with 
pepper and salt to taste. Stew gently until tender, and 
turn into a deep dish. 

If the onions are strong and large, boil in three waters, 
throwing away all of the first and second, and reserving a 
very little of the third to mix with the milk. 

It oxight to be more generally known that the disagreea- 
ble odor left by any of the onion family upon the breath 
may be removed by chewing and swallowing a few graiua 



ONIONS. 229 

of roasted coffee. No more nutritious vegetable ever finds 
its way to our tables, and it is greatly to be regretted that 
the unpleasant result just named should deter so many from 
eating it. It is especially beneficial to brain- wox'kers and 
nervous invalids — the very people who are least likely to 
taste it. 

Baked Onions. 

The large Spanish or Bermuda onions are the only kinds 
which are usually baked. Wash clean, but do not remove 
the skins. Boil an hour — the water should be boiling 
when they are put in, and slightfy salt. Change it twice 
during this time, always replenishing with more, boiling- 
hot. Turn off the watei', take the onions out a^d lay upon 
a cloth, that all the moisture may be absorbed or evaporate. 
Roll each in a round piece of buttered tissue-paper, twisting 
it at the top to keep it closed, and bake in a slow oven 
neai'ly an hour. "When tender all through, peel them, put 
them into a deep dish, and brown slightly, basting with 
butter freely. This will take perhaps a quarter of an hour 
more. Serve in a vegetable dish, and pour over the melted 
butter, when you have sjjrinkled with pepper and salt. 

Stuffed Onions. 

Wash and skin very large Bermuda onions. Lay in 
cold water an hour. Parboil in boiling water half an hour. 
Drain, and while hot extract the hearts, taking care not to 
break the outer layers. Chop the inside thus obtained very 
fine, with a little cold fat pork or bacon. Add breadr 
crumbs, pepper, salt, mace, and wet with a spoonful or two 
of cream. Bind with a well-beaten egg, and work into a 
smooth paste. Stuff the onicas with this; put into a drip- 
ping-pan with a very little hot water, and simmer in the 
oven for an hovu*, basting often with melted bitter. When 



230 COMMON SENSE. 

done, take the onions up carefully, and arrange the open 
ends uppermost in a vegetable dish. Add to the gravy in 
the dripping-pan the juice of half a lemon, four tablespoon- 
fuls of cream or milk, and a little browned flour wet with 
cold milk. Boil up once, and pour over the onions. 

Stewed Tomatoes. *J« 

Loosen the skins by pouring scalding water upon them ; 
peel and cut them up, extracting the cores or hard part of 
the stem-end, and removing all unripe portions. Stew in a 
saucepan (tin or porcelain) half an hour, when add salt 
and pepper to taste, a teaspoonful of white sugar, and a 
tablespoonful of butter. Stew gently fifteen minutes longer, 
and serve. 

Some cooks thicken the tomatoes with a little grated 
bi'ead. A minced onion — a small one — improves the flavor. 
Another pleasant variety is to put a quarter as much green 
corn as you have tomatoes into the saucepan when it is first 
set on the fire, and stew gently. 

Stuffed Baked Tomatoes. ^ 

Choose largCj smooth tomatoes, and cut a thin slice 
from the blossom end of each, laying it aside for further 
use. Scoop out the inside, and chop fine witli a little grated 
bread, some green corn, salt, pepper, a teaspoonful white 
sugar, and a tablespoonful butter. Mix well, and stufi" the 
hollowed tomatoes. Fit the top on neatly, place in circu- 
lar rows in a deep dish and bake thi'ee-quarters of an hour, 
•to a light brown. Fill the interstices with the force-meat 
if you have any left, befoie you bake. Do not peel them. 

Scalloped Tomatoes. »J* 

Peel and cut in slices a quarter of an inch thick. Pack 
in a pudding-dish in alternate layers, with a force-meat made 



TOMATOES. 23 J 

of bread-crumbs, butter, salt, pepper, and a little wliita 
sugar. Spread thickly u2)on each stratura of tomatoes, and 
■when the dish is nearly full, put tomatoes uppermost, a 
good bit of butter upon each slice. Dust with pepper and 
a little sugar. Sti-ew with dry biead-crumbs, and bake cov- 
ered half an hour ; remove the lid and bake brown. 

Scallop of Tomatoes and Green Corn. ^ 

This is made as above, substituting for the bread-crumbs 
in the force-meat, green corn cut from the cob, and season- 
ing with some fat pork chopped very fine, a minced shallot, 
pepper, salt, and sugar. Let the top layer be tomatoes, 
butter and season, and sift grated bread-crumb^over it to 
brown the scallop. Bake covered half an hour ; uncover 
and leave in the oven as much longer. This time is for a 
large dishful. 

Broiled Tomatoes. 

Select large, firm ones, and do not peel. Slice half an 
inch thick, and broil upon an oyster gridiron. A few 
minutes will suffice to cook them. Have ready in a cup 
some hot butter, seasoned with pepper, salt, a little sugar, 
and a half a teaspoonful of made mustard. As soon as the 
tomatoes are done, dip each piece in this mixtiire and lay 
upon a hot chafing-dish. When all ai-e dished, heat what 
remains of the seasoning to a boil, pour upon them, and 
serve at once. 

Broiled tomatoes are much liked by those who have 
eaten them cooked in this manner. 

Baked Tomatoes (Plain). 

Peel and slice a quarter of an inch thick. Pack in a 
pudding-dish, seasoning each layer with salt, pepper, butter, 
and a very little white sugar. Bake covered half an houi ; 



232 COMMON SENSE. 

remove tlie lid, and brown for fifteen minutes. Five min- 
utes before taking from the oven, pour over the top thi-ee 
or four tablespoonfuls of cream whipped up for a few 
minutes with melted butter. 

Raw Tomatoes. 

Do not loosen the skins with scalding water. It im 
pairs the flavor and destroys the crispness. Pare with a 
keen knife, slice and lay in a glass dish. Season with 
pepper, salt, and vinegar, stirring a piece of ice rapidly 
around in the dressing before pouring it over the tomatoes, 
and setting the dish in the refrigerator until wanted. 

Thereis no salad, excepting, perhaps, lettuce and cucum- 
bers, that is more improved by the use of ice than tomatoes. 

Raw Cucumbers. 

Pare neatly from end to end, and lay in ice-water one 
hour. "Wipe them and slice thin. Season with pepper, 
salt, and vinegar — and oil, if you wish — laying some bits of 
ice among them, with thin slices of onion. Cucumbers 
should be gathered while the dew is on them, and eaten the 
same day. Leave them in a cool place until you are ready 
to pare them. 

Fried Cucumbers, *{« 

Pare and lay in ice-water half an hour. Cut length- 
wise into slices nearly half an inch thick, and lay in ice- 
water ten minutes longer. Wipe each piece dry with a 
soft cloth, sprinkle with pepper and salt, and dredge with 
flour. Fry to a delicate brown in sweet clarified dripping, 
nice lard, or butter. 

Manv declare that cvicumbers are never fit to eat unless 
fried, and they are assuredly far more wholesome than 
when served raw. 



GEEEN OOKN. 233 



Stewed Cucumbers. 



Pai-e, lay in ice-water an hour; then slice a quarter of 
an inch thick. Pick out the seeds with a pen-kuife, and 
put into a sauce})an with enough boiling Avater to cover 
them. Stew fifteen minutes, and drain oif the water. 
Add enough from the boiling tea-kettle to keep them from 
burning ; season with salt and pepper, and stir carefully 
in a tablespoonful of butter — or two, should the quantity 
of cucumber be large. Stew gently ten minutes, and add 
half a cujiful of rich milk; thicken with a little flour, 
boil up, and serve in a deep dish, squeezing some lemon- 
juice in at the last. 

This is a popular English dish, although it seems a 
strange one to American ideas. 

Boiled Green Corn. 

Choose young sugar-corn, full gi'own, but not hard; 
test with the nail. When the grain is pierced, the milk 
should escape in a jet, and not be thick. Clean by strip- 
ping oflf the outer leaves, turn back the innermost cover- 
ing carefully, pick off every thread of silk, and recover 
the ear with the thin husk that grew nearest it. Tie at 
the top with a bit of thread, put into boiling water salted, 
and cook fast from twenty minutes to half an houi*, in 
proportion to size and age. Cut off the stalks close to the 
cob, and send whole to table wrapped in a napkin. 

Or, you can cut from the cob while hot, and season 
with butter, pepper, and salt. Send to table in a root or 
vegetable dish. 

Corn and Tomatoes. 

Take equal quantities of green corn cut from the cob, 
and tomatoes sliced and peeled. Stew together half an 



234 COMMON 8ENSE. 

liour; season ■witli pepper, salt, and a very little sugar. 
Stew fifteen minutes longer, and stir in a great lump of 
butter. Five minutes later, pour out and serve. 

Succotash. 

Tliis is made of gi-een corn and Lima beans, although 
you can substitute for the latter string or butter beans. 
Have a third more corn than beans, when the former has 
been cut from the cob and the beans shelled. Put into 
boiling water enough to cover them — no more — and stew 
gently together until tender — perhaps half an hour — stir- 
ring now and then. Pour off nearly all the water, and 
add a large cupful of milk. Stew in this, watching to pre- 
vent burning, for an hour ; then stir in a great lump of 
butter, a teaspoonful of flour wet with cold milk, pepper 
and salt to taste. Boil up once, and pour into a deep 
vegetable-dish. If you use string-beans, sti'ing and cut up 
into half-inch lengths before cooking. 

Green Corn Pudding. *J« 

1 quart milk. 
6 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls melted butter. 
1 " Avhito sugar. 

1 dozen ears of corn — large ones. 

Grate the corn from the cob ; beat the whites and yolks 
of the eggs separately. Put the corn and yolks together, 
stir \ard, and add the butter ; then the milk gradually, 
beating all the while ; next the sugar and a little salt ; 
lastly the whites. Bake slowly at first, covering the dish, 
for an hovir. Remove the cover, and brown finely. 

This is a most delicious accompaniment to a meat 
course, when properly mixed and baked. Warm up what 



GEEEN COKN. 235 

is left fi-oin dinner for breakfast, by moistening it -svitL a 
little warm milk and stirring in a saucepan until smoking 
hot. You can make this pudding from canned corn ic 
■winter. 

Green Coun Fritters or Cakes. *J« 

Grate the corn, and allow an egg and a half for every 
cupful, with a tablespoonful of milk or ci'eam. Beat the 
eggs well, add the corn by degrees, beating very hard ; salt 
to taste; put a tablespoonful of melted butter to every 
pint of corn ; stir in the milk, and thicken with just 
enough flour to hold them together— say a tablespoonful 
for every two eggs. You may fry in hot lard, as you woiild 
fritters, but a better plan is to cook upon a griddle, like 
batter cakes. Test a little fii-st, to see that it is of the 
right consistency. 

Eaten at dinner or breakfiist, these always meet with a 
cordial welcome. 

Stewed Green Corn. 

Cut from the cob, and stew fifteen minutes in boiling 
water. Turn off* most of this, cover with cold milk, and 
stew until very tender, adding, before you take it up, a 
large lump of butter cut into bits and rolled in flour. 
Season with pepper and salt to taste. Boil five minutes, 
and serve. 

Cold, corn left from dinner should be cut from the cob 
and stewed a few minutes in a little milk, adding seasoning 
as above. Or, you can mix it with chopped cold potatoes — 
Irish or sweet ; heat a piece of butter or beef-dripping in 
a frying-pan, and stir in the mixture until smoking hot. 
Never throw away a good ear of sweet corn. 



236 common sense. 

Roasted Green Corn. 

Turn back the liusks? upou the stalk, pick oflf the silk, 
recover with the husks closely as possible, and roast in the 
hot ashes of a wood-fire. Eat with butter, salt, and pep- 
per, out of doors, in the forest, or on the beach. 

Salsify or Oyster-Plant {Stewed), t^ 

Scrape the roots, dropping each into cold water as soon 
as it is cleaned. Exposure to the air blackens them. Cut 
in })ieces an inch long, put into a saucepan with hot water 
enough to cover them, and stew until tender. Turn oflE 
nearly all the water, and add a cupful of cold milk. 
Stew ten minutes after this begins to boil ; put in a great 
lump of butter, cut into bits, and rolled in flour; pepper 
and salt to taste. Boil up once, and serve. The taste is 
curiously like that of stewed oystei's. p 

Eried Salsify, or Mock Oysters. *J* 

Scrape tHe roots thoroughly, and lay in cold water ten 
or fifteen minutes. Boil whole until tender, drain, and 
when cold, mash with a wooden spoon to a smooth paste," 
picking out all the fibres. JMoisten with a little milk ; add 
a tablespoonful of butter, and an egg and a half for every 
cupful of salsify. Beat the eggs light. Make into round 
cakes, dredge with flour, and fry brown. 

Fried Egg-Plant. (^ 

Slice the egg-plant at least half an inch thick ; pare each 
piece carefully, and lay in salt and water, putting a plate 
upon the topmost to keep it under the brine, and let them 
alone for an hour or more. Wipe each slice, dip in beaten 
egg, then in cracker-crumbs, and fry in hot lard until well 
done and nicely browned. 



VEGETABLES. 237 

Stuffed Egg-Plant. 

Parboil for ten minutes. Slit each down the side, and 
extract the seeds. Prop opea the cut with a bit of clean 
■wood or china, and lay in cold salt and water while you 
prepare the force-meat. Make this of bread-crumbs, minute 
bits of fat pork, salt, pepper, nutmeg, parsley, and a very 
little onion, chopped up together. Moisten with cream, and 
bind with a beaten egg. Fill the cavity in the egg-plant 
with this ; wind soft pack-thread about them to keep the 
slit shut, and bake, putting a little water in the drii^ping- 
pan. Baste with butter and water when they begin to 
cook. Test with a straw when they are tender, and baste 
twice at the last with butter. Lay the egg-plants in a dish, 
add two or three tablespoonfuls of cream to the gravy, 
thicken with a little flour, put in a teaspoonfnl of chopped 
parsley, boil up once, and pour over the vegetable. 

Boiled Carrots. 

Wash and scrape well, and lay in cold Avater half an 
hour. If large, split them, or cut across in two or three 
pieces. Put into boiling water, slightly salted, and boil 
until tender. Large ones will require nearly an hour and 
a half to cook. Young carrots should only be washed be- 
fore they are boiled, and the skin be rubbed off with a cloth 
afterward. Butter well, and serve hot. 

Stewed Carrots. 

Scrape, and lay in cold water half an hour or more. 
Boil whole three-quarters of an hour, drain, and cut into 
round slices a quarter of an inch thick. Put on in a sauce- 
pan with a teacupful of broth — veal, or beef, or mutton; 
pepper and salt to taste, and stew gently half an hour. Just 
before they are done, add four tablespoonfuls cream or milk, 



238 COMMON SENSE. 

and a good lump of butter cut into bits, and rolled in flour. 
Boil up and serVe. 

If you have not the broth, use water, and put in a tablo 
spoonful of butter when the saucepan is set on the fire, in 
addition to the quantity I have specified. 

Another Way. 

Scrape and boil until nearly done. Cut into small 
squares, and put into a saucepan, with two small onions 
minced ; a little chopped })arsley, pepper and salt to taste, 
and half a c\ip of rather thin drawn butter. They will re- 
quire half an hour's simmering. Serve hot. 

Mashed Carrots. 

Wash, scrape, and lay in cold water a while. Boil very 
tender in hot water, slightly salted. Drain, and mash 
with a beetle or wooden spoon, working in a large spoonful 
of butter, with pepper and salt. A little cream will im- 
prove them. Mound as you would mashed potatoes, and 
stamp a figure upon them, or mai-k in squares with a knife. 

French, or String or " Snap " Beans. 

Break off the tops and bottoms and " string " carefully. 
Then pare both edges with a sharp knife, to be certain that 
no remnant of the tough fibre remains. Not one cook in 
a hundred performs this duty as deftly and thoroughly as 
it should be done. I have heard sevei-al gentlemen say that 
they could always tell, after the first mouthful, whether the 
mistress or the hireling had " strung " the beans. It is a 
tedious and disagreeable business, this pulling bits of woody 
thread out of one's mouth when he wants to enjoy his diimer. 

Cut the beans thus cleared of their troublesome attachcSy 
in pieces an inch long, and lay in cold water with a little 



VEGF- .| 

jETABLES. >J 

salt for fifteen or twenty minutes. Drain them, and put 
into a saucej^an of boiling water. Boil quickly, twenty 
minutes if well-gi'own — less if small — at any rate, until 
tender. Drain in a cullender until the water ceases to diip 
from them. Dish with a gi-eat spoonful of butter stirred in. 
To my taste, beans need to have a bit of bacon boiled 
with them — whole, or chopped into bits that dissolve in the 
boiling. It mellows the rank taste you seek to remove by 
boiling. 

Lima and Butter Beans. 

Shell into cold water ; let them lie a while ; put into a 
pot with plenty of boiling water and a little salt, and cook 
fast until tender. Large ones sometimes require nearly an 
hour's boiling. The average time is forty minutes. Drain 
and butter well when dished, peppering to taste. 

Kidney and other Small Beans. 

Shell into cold water, and cook in boiling until tender. 
A small piece of fat bacon boiled with them is an advan- 
tage to nearly all. If you do this, do not salt them. 

Dried Beans. 

"Wash and soak over night in lukewarm water, chang- 
ing it several times for warmer. If this is done they will 
require but two hours' boiling. Drain very thoroughly, 
pressing them firmly, but lightly, in the cullender with a 
wooden spoon ; mix in a gi-eat lump of butter when they 
are dished. 

Boiled Beets. 

Wash, but do not touch with a knife before they are 
boiled. If cut while raw, they bleed themselves pale in 
the hot water. Boil until tender — if full-grown at least 



il'^ COMJION Si^ 

two hours. When done, rvib off the skins, slice round if 
large, split if young, and butter well in the dish. Salt and 
pepper to taste. 

A nice way is to slice them upon a hot dish, mix a great 
spoonful of melted butter with four or five of vinegar, pep- 
per and salt, heat to boiling, and pour over the beets. 

Instead of consigning the cold ones " left over " to the 
swill pail, pour cold vinegar upon them and use as pickles 
wilh cold or roast meat. 

fe'TEWED Beets. 

Boil young, sweet beets, until nearly done ; skin and 
slice them. Put into a saucepan with a minced shallot and 
parsley, two tablespoonfids melted butter, a like quantity 
of vinegar, some salt and 2>ppper. Set on the fire and sim- 
mer twenty minutf^s, shaking the saucepan now and then. 
Serve with the gravy poured over them. 

BoiJ.ED Parsnips. 

If young, scrape before cooking. If old, pare carefully, 
and if large, split. Put into boiling water, salted, and boil, 
if small and tender, from half to three-quarters of an hour, 
if full-grown, more than an hour. When tender, drain and 
slice lengthwise, buttering well when you dish. 

Fried Parsnips. ^ 

Boil until tender, scrape ofi" the skin, and cut in thick 
lengthwise slices. Dredge with flour and fry in hot drip- 
ping or lard, turning when one side is browned. Drain off 
every drop of fat ; pepper, and serve hot. 



vegetables. 241 

Parsnip Fritters. »J« 

Boil tender, mash smooth and fine, picking out the 
woody bits. For three large parsnips allow two eggs, one 
cvip rich milk, one tablespoonful butter, one teaspoonful 
salt, three tablespoonfuls tlour. Beat the eggs light, stir in 
the maslied parsnips, beating hard; then the butter and 
salt, next the milk, lastly the salt. Fry as fritters, or as 
griddle-cakes. 

Mashed Parsnips. 

Boil and scrape them, mash smooth with the back of a 
wooden spoon, or a potato-beetle, picking out the fibres ; 
mix in three or four spoonfuls of cream, a great spoonful 
of butter, pepper and salt to taste. Heat to boiling in a 
saucepan, and serve. Heap in a mound as you would po- 
tato cooked in the same way. 

Buttered Parsnips. 

Boil tender and scrape. Slice a quarter of an inch thick 
lengthwise. Put into a saucepan with three tablespoonfuls 
melted butter, pepper and salt, and a little chopped parsley. 
Shake over tlie fire until the mixture boils. Lay the pars- 
nips in order upon a dish, jiour the sauce over them, and 
garnish with parsley. It is a pleasant addition to this dish 
to stu* a few spoonfuls of cream into the sauce after the 
parsnips are taken out ; boil up, and pour upon them. 

Boiled Sea-kale. 

Tie nj) in bunches when you have picked it over cai-e- 
fully, and lay in cold water for an hour. Put into saltod 
boiling water, and cook twenty or thirty minutes until ten- 
der. Lay some slices of buttered toast in the bottom of a 
dish, clip the threads binding the stems of the sea-kale, and 
11 



2i2 COMMON SENSE. 

pile upon the toast, buttering it abundantly. Or, you can 
send around with it a boat of drawn butter. 

Stewed Sea-kale. 

Clip off the stems, wash well, tie in neat bunches, and 
when it has lain in cold water an hour or so, put into a 
saucepan of boiling water, slightly salted. Boil fifteen 
yiinutes, drain w^ell, clip the threads, and return to the 
saucepan, with a little rich gravy if you have it. If not, 
pour in three or four tablespoonfuls of butter drawn in milk, 
pepper and salt, and simmer eight or ten minutes. 

Artichokes. 

Strip off the outer leaves, and cut the stalks close to 
the bottom. Wash well and lay in cold water two hours. 
Immerse in boiling water, the stalk-ends uppermost, with 
an inverted plate upon them to keep them down. Boil an 
hovir and a half, or itntil very tender. Arrange in circles 
upon a dish, the tops up, and pour dx'awn butter over 
them. 

Summer Squash or Cymbling. 

There are many varieties of this vegetable, but the gen- 
eral rules for cooking them are the same. Unless they are 
extremely tender, it is best to pare them, cutting away as 
little as possible besides the hard outer rind. Take out 
the seeds, when you have quartered them, and lay the 
pieces in cold water. Boil until tender throughout. Drain 
well, pressing out all the water ; mash soft and smooth, sea- 
soning with butter, pepper, and salt. Do this quickly, that 
you may serve up hot. 



TEGETABLES. 243 

Winter Squash. 

Pare, take out the seeds, cut into small pieces, and stew 
until soft and tender. Drain, press well, to rid it of all tlie 
■water, and masli with butter, pepper, and salt. It will 
take much longer to cook than the summer squash, and be- 
fore you put it into hot water, should lie in cold at least 
two hours. 

Stewed Pumpkin. 

Cut in two, extract the seeds, slice, and pare. Cover 
with cold water for an hour ; put over the fire in a pot of 
boUing water and stew gently^ stirring often, until it breaks 
to pieces. Drain and squeeze, rub through a cullender, 
then return to the saucepan with a tablesj^oonful of butter, 
pepper, and salt to taste. Stir rapidly from the bottom 
until very hot, when dish, rounding into a mound, with 
" dabs " of pepper on the top. 

Baked Pumpkin. 

Choose the richest pumpkin you can find ; take out the 
seeds, cut in quarters or eighths, pare, and slice lengthwise 
half an inch thick. Arrange in layers — not more than two 
or three slices deep — in a shallow but broad baking-dish. 
Put a very little water in the bottom, and bake very slowly 
until not only done, but dry. It requires a long time, 
for the heat should be gentle. Butter each stiip on both 
sides when you dish, and eat hot with bread and butter for 
tea. 

I have been assured, by people who have tried it, that 
this is a palatable dish to those who are fond of the flavor 
Df pumpkin. I insert it here upon their recommendation 
—not my own. 



214: COMMON SENSB. 

Poke Stalks. 
When the yoving stalks are not larger than a man's lit 
tie finger, and show only a tuft of leaves at top a few 
inches above ground, is the time to gather them. They are 
unfit for table use when larger and older. Scrape the 
stalks, but do not cut off the leaves. Lay in cold water, 
with a little salt, for two hours. Tie in bundles, as you do 
asparagus, put into a saucepan of boiling water, and cook 
fast three-quarters of an hour. Lay buttered toast in the 
bottom of a dish, untie the bundles, and pile the poke 
evenly upon it, buttering very well, and sjjrinkling with pep- 
per and salt. This is a toleral^le substitute for asparagus. 

Mushrooms. 

Imprimis. — Have nothing to do with them until you 
are an excellent judge between the true and false. That 
sounds somewhat like the advice of the careful mother to 
her son, touching the wisdom of never going near the water 
until he learned how to swim — but the caution can hardly 
be stated too strongly. Not being ambitious of martyrdom, 
even in the cause of gastronomical enterprise, especially if 
the instriiment is to be a contemptible, rank-smelling fun- 
gus, I never eat or cook mushrooms ; but I learned, years 
ago, in hill-side rambles, how to distinguish the real from 
the spurious article. Shun low, damp, shady spots in your 
quest. The good mushrooms are most plenty in August 
and September, and spring up in the open, sunny fields or 
commons, after low-lying fogs or soaking dews. The top is 
a dirty white, — ^^ja?' comj^laisance, pearl-color, — the under- 
side pink or salmon, changing to russet or brown soon after 
they are gathered. The poisonotis sport all colors, and are 
usually far prettier than their virtuous kindred. Those 
which are dead- white above and below, as well as the stalk, 
are also to be let alone. 



MUSHK00M8. 2tlo 

Cook a peeled wliite onion in tlie pot with your miisK* 
rooms. If it turn black, throw all aw ay, and be projjerly 
thankful for your escape. It is also deemed safe to reject 
the mess of wild pottage, if, in stirring them, your silver 
spoon should blacken. But I cei'tainly once knew a lady 
who did not discover until hers were eaten and partially 
digested, that the silver had come to grief in the discharge 
of duty. It was very dark, and required a deal of rubbing 
to restore cleanliness and polish ; but the poison — if death 
were, indeed, in the pot — was slow in its effects, since she 
lived many years after the experiment. It is as well per- 
haps, though, not to repeat it too often. 

To re-capitulate.- — The eatable ones are round when 
they first show their heads in a critical world. As they 
grow, the lower part unfolds and reveals a lining of salmon 
fringe, while the stalk and top are dirty white. When the 
mushroom is more than twenty-four hours old, or within a 
few hours after it is gathered, the salmon changes to brown. 
The skin can also be more easily peeled from the edges than 
in the spurious kinds. 

Stewed Mushrooms. 

Choose button mushrooms of uniform size. Wipe clean 
and white with a wet flannel cloth, and cut off the stalks. 
Put into a porcelain saucepan, cover with cold water, and 
stew very gently fifteen minutes. Salt to taste ; add a 
tablespoonfiil of butter, divided into bits and rolled in 
flour. Boil three or four minutes ; stir in three table- 
spooufids of cream whipped iip with an egg, stir two min- 
utes without letting it boil, and serve. 

Or, 
Rub them white, stew in water ten minutes ; strain par- 
tially, and cover with as much warm milk as you have 



246 CWilMON SENSE. 

poured off water ; stew j£ve minutes in this ; salt, pepper ' 
and add some veal or chicken gravy, or drawn butter. 
Thicken ^vith a little flour wet in cold milk, and a beaten 

Baked Musheooms. 

Take fresh ones, — the size is not very important, — cut 
off nearly all the stalks, and wipe off the skin with wet 
flannel. Arrange neatly in a pie-dish, pepper and salt, 
sprinkle a little mace among them, and lay a bit of butter 
upon each. Bake about half an hour, basting now and 
then with butter and water, that they may not be too dry. 
Serve in the dish in which they were baked, with maitre 
cChotel saiice poured over them. 

Broiled Mushrooms. 

Peel the finest and freshest you can get, score the under 
side, and cut the stems close. Put into a deep dish and 
anoint well, once and again, with melted butter. Salt and 
pepper, and let them lie in the butter an hour and a half. 
Then broil over a clear, hot fire, using an oyster-gridiron, 
and turning it over as one side browns. Serve hot, well 
buttered, pepper and salt, and squeeze a few. drops of lemon- 
juice upon each. 

Celery. 

Wash and scrajie the stalks when you have cut off the 
roots. Cut off the green leaves and reject the greenest, 
toughest stalks. Retain the blanched leaves that grow 
neai-est the heart. Keep in cold water imtil you send to 
the table. Serve in a celery glass, and let each guest dip in 
salt for himself. (/S'ee Celery Salad.) 



RADISHES — OKEA. 24'? 



Radishes. 



A friend of mine, after many and woful trials witli " tli< 
greatest plague of life," engaged a supercilious young lady 
who " only liired out in the best of families as a pi'ofessed 
cook." She arrived in the afternoon, and was told that tea 
Nvould be a simple affair — bread-and-butter, cold meat, cake, 
and a dish of radishes, which were brought in from the gar- 
den as the order was given. The lady was summoned to 
the parlor at that moment, and remarked in leaving — " You 
can prepare those now, Bridget." Awhile later she peeped 
into the kitchen, attracted by the odor of hot fat. The 
frying-pan hissed on the fire, the contents were a half-pound 
of butter, and the " professional " stood at the table with a 
radish topped and tailed in one hand, a knife in the other. 
" I'm glad to see ye," thus she greeted the intruder. " Is 
it paled or owpaled ye'll have them radishes ? Some of the 
quality likes 'em fried wid the skins on — some widout. I 
thought I'd wait and ask yerself." 

My readers can exei'cise their own choice in the matter 
of peeling, putting the frying out of the question. Wash 
and lay them in ice-water so soon as they are gathered. 
Cut off the tops when your breakfast or supper is ready, 
leaving about an inch of the stalks on ; scrape off the skin 
if you choose, but the red ones are prettier if you do not ; 
arrange in a tall glass or a round glass saucer, the stalks out- 
side, the points meeting in the centre ; lay cracked ice 
among them and send to table. Scrape and quarter the 
large white ones. 

Good radishes are crisp to the teeth, look cool, and taste 
hot. 

Okra. 

Boil the young pods, in enough salted hot water to 
cover them, until tender. Drain thoroughly, and when 



248 COMMON SENSE. 

dished pour over tliem a sauce of three or four spoonfuls 
melted (not drawn) butter, a tablespoonful of vinegar, pep- 
per and salt to taste. Heat to boiling before covering the 
okras with it. 

Boiled Hominy. 

The large kind, made of cracked, not ground corn, ia 
erroneously termed " samp " by Northern grocers. This ia 
the Indian name for the fine-grained. To avoid confusion, 
we will call the one large, the other small. Soak the large 
over night in cold water. Next day pvit it into a pot 
with at least two quarts of water to a quart of the hominy, 
and boil slowly three hoiirs, or until it is soft. Drain in a 
cullender, heap in a root-dish, and stir in butter, pepper, and 
salt. 

Soak the small hominy in the same way, and boil in as 
much water, slowly, stirring very often, almost constantly 
at the last. It should be as thick as mush, and is generally 
eaten at breakfast with sugar, cream, and nutmeg. It is a 
good and exceedingly wholesome dish, especially for chil- 
dren. The water in which it is boiled should be slightly 
salt. If soaked in warm water, and the same be changed 
once or twice for warmer, it will boil soft in an hour. Boil 
in the last water. 

Fried Hominy. 

If large, j^ut a good lump of butter or di'ipping in the 
frying-pan, and heat. Turn in some cold boiled hominy, 
and cook until the under-side is browned. Place a dish up- 
side-down on the frying-jian and upset the latter, that the 
brown crust may be uppermost. 

Eat with meat. 

Cut the small hominy in slices and fry in hot lard or 
drippings. Or, moisten to a soft paste with milk ; beat in 
some melted butter, bind with a beaten egg, form into 



HOMLNY CfiOQUETTES — BAKED HOMINY. 2-10 

round cakes with your hands, dredge with flour and fry a 
light brown. 

Hominy Croquettes. »J« 

To a cujiful of cold boiled hominy (small-grained) add a 
tablespoonful melted butter and stir hard, moistening, by 
degrees, with a cupful of milk, beating to a soft light paste. 
Put in a teasjjoonful of white sugar, and lastly, a well- 
beaten egg. Roll into oval balls with floured hands, dip in 
beaten egg, then cracker-crumbs, and fry in hot lard. 

Very good ! 

Baked Hominy. »J« 

To a cupful of cold boiled hominy (small kind) allow 
two cups of milk, a heaping teaspoonful of butter, a tea- 
spoonful of white sugar, a little salt, and three eggs. Beat 
the eggs very liglit, yolks and whites separately. Work 
the yolks first into the hominy, alternately with the melted 
butter. When thoi'oughly mixed, put in sugar and salt, 
and go on beating while you soften the batter gradually 
with the milk. Be careful to leave no lumps in the hominy. 
Lastly stir in the whites, and bake in a buttered pudding- 
dish until light, firm, and delicately browned. 

This can be eaten as a dessert, but it is a delightful 
vegetable, and the best substitute that can be devised for 
green com pudding. 

Rice Croquettes. »J« 

Half a cup of rice. 

1 pint milk. 

2 tablespoonfuls sugar. 

3 eggs. 

A little grated lemon-peel. 
1 tablespoonful melted butter. 
A saltspoonful salt. 
11* 



250 COMMON SENSE. 

Soak the rice three hours in warm water enougli to 
cover it. Drain almost dry, and pour in the milk. Stew 
in a farina-kettle, or one saucepan set in another of hot 
water, until the rice is very tender. Add the sugar, butter 
and salt, and simmer ten minutes. Whisk the eggs to a 
froth, and add cautiously, taking the saucepan from the fire 
while you whip them into the mixture. Return to the 
range or stove, and stir while they thicken, not allowing 
them to boil. Remove the saucepan, and add the gi-ated 
lemon-peel ; then turn out upon a well-greased dish to 
cool. When cold and stiff, flour your hands and roll into 
oval or pear-shaped balls ; dip in beaten egg, then in fine 
cracker-crumbs, and fry in nice lard. 

Or, 

You can make a plainer dish of cold boiled rice, mois- 
tened with milk and a little melted butter to a smooth 
paste. Add sugar and salt, bind with two or three beaten 
eggs ; make into cakes or balls, and proceed as directed 
above. Eat hot with roast or boiled fowls. If you shape 
Kke a pear, stick a clove in the small end for the stem. 

Boiled Rice. 

Pick over carefully and wash in two waters, letting it 
stand in the last until you are ready to boil. Have ready 
some boiling water slightly salted, and put in the rice. 
Boil it just twenty minutes, and do not put a spoon in it, 
but shake up hard and often, holding the cover on with the 
other hand. When done, drain off the water, and set the 
sauce-pan uncovered upon the range, where the rice will 
dry, not burn, for five minutes. 

Eat with boiled mutton or fowls. 



macaroni. 251 

Baked Macakoni. >^ 

Break half a pound of pipe macaroni in pieces an inch 
long, and put into a saucepan of boiling water slightly 
salted. Stew gently twenty minutes. It shovild be soft, 
but not broken or split. Drain well and put a layer in the 
bottom of a buttered pie or pudding-dish ; upon this grate 
some mild, rich cheese, and scatter over it some bits of 
butter. Spread upon the cheese more macaroni, and fill 
the dish in this order, having macaroni at the top, but- 
tered well, without the cheese. Add a few spoonfuls of 
cream or milk, and a very little salt. Bake covered half 
an hour, then brown nicely, and serve in the bake-dish. 

Stewed Macaroni — Italian Style. 

Break the macaroni into inch lengths, and stew twenty 
minutes, or until tender. Pi-epare the sauce beforehand. 
Cut half a pound of beef into strips and stew half an hour. 
The water should be cold when the meat is put in. At the 
end of that time, add a minced onion and a pint of toma- 
toes peeled and sliced. Boil for an hour, and strain 
through a cullender when you have taken out the meat. 
The sauce should be well boiled "dov/n by this time. Yon 
do not want more than a pint for a large dish of macaroni. 
Return the liquid to the saucepan, add a good piece of 
biitter, with pepi^er and salt, and stew until you are ready 
to dish the macaroni. Drain this well, sprinkle lightly 
with salt, and heap upon a chafing-dish or in a root-dish. 
Pour the tomato saiice over it ; cover and let it stand in a 
warm place ten minutes before sending to table. Send 
around^gi-ated cheese with it. The Italians serve the meat 
also in a sepai-ate dish as a ragout, adding some of the sauce, 
highly seasoned with pepper and other spices. 



252 comivion sense. 

Macakoni a la Creme. i^ 

Cook the macaroni ten minutes in boiling water. 
Drain this off, and add a cupful of milk, with a little salt. 
Stew until tender. In another saiicepan heat a cup of 
milk to boiling, thicken with a teaspoonful of flour, stir in 
a tablespoonful of butter, and lastly, a beaten egg. When 
this thickens, pour over the macai'oni after it is dished. 

This is a simple and good dessert, eaten with buttei-, 
sugar, and nutmeg, or sweet sauce. If set on with meat, 
grate, cheese thickly over it, or send around a saucer of 
grated cheese with it. 

Eggs. 

To guess (I do not say determine) whether an egg is 
good, shut one eye; frame the egg "in the hollow of the 
hand, telescope-wise, and look at the sun throxigh it with 
the open eye. If you can distinctly trace the outline 
of the yolk and the white looks clear around it, the chances 
are in favor of the egg and the buyer. Or, shake it gently 
at your ear. If addled, it will gurgle like water ; if there 
is a chicken inside, you may distinguish a slight " thud " 
against the sides of the egg. Or, still again, you may try 
eggs from your own j)o\iltry-yard by putting them into a 
pan of cold water. The freshest sink first. Those that 
float are questionable — genei'ally worse. 

The best plan is to break them. In making cake, or 
anything that requires more than one, break each over a 
saucer, that it may be alone in its condemnation, if bad. 
Reject doubtful ones without Iiesitation. Yield implicit 
trust, or none at all. 

, T^eep eggs in a cool, not cold place. Pack in bran or 
salt, with the small end downward, if you wish to use within 
two or three weeks ; and furthermore, take the precaution 
to grease them well with linseed oil, or wash them over with 



EGGS. 253 

a weak solution of gixm tragacantli or varnish. This ex- 
eludes the air. Another way is to make some pretty strong 
lime-water, allowing a jiound of lime to a gallon of boiling 
water. "When perfectly cold, fill a large jar with it in 
which you have packed the eggs, small end downward ; lay 
a light saucer upon the top to keep them under water, and 
keep in a cool place. Renew the lime-water every three 
weeks. You may add an ounce of saltpetre to it. 

Eggs for boiling may be " canned " as follows : So soon 
as they are brought in from the nests, put two or three 
dozen at a time in a deep pan ; pour scalding water over 
them ; let it stand thirty seconds, and turn it all off. Cover 
immediately with more scalding water, and repeat the pro- 
cess yet the third time. Wipe dr}', and pack in bran or 
salt when they cool. This hardens the albumen into an 
air-tight case for the yolk. Of course, you cannot use these 
eggs for cake or syllabubs, or anything that is prepared 
with whipped eggs. Pack with the small end down. 

Boiled Eggs. 

Put into a saucepan of boiling water with a tablespoon, 
not to break or crack them. Only a slovenly cook, or a 
careless one, drops them in with her fingers. Boil steadily 
three minutes, if you want them soft — ten, if hard. 

Another way is to put them on in cold Avater, and let it 
come to a boU, which will be in ten minutes. The inside, 
wliite and yolk, will be then of the consistency of custard. 
[Many gourmands like them best thus. Still another is to 
put them in one of the silver egg-boilers \ised on the break- 
fast-table (a covered bowl -svill do as well) ; cover them' 
with boiling water, and let them stand three minutes. 
Pour this off, and refill with more, also boiling hot, and 
leave them in it five minutes longer. Wrap in a napkin 
in a deep dish, if you have not a regular egg-dish. 



254 common sense. 

Dropped or Poached Eggs. 

Strain some boiling water into a frying-pan, whicli must 
also be perfectly clean. The least impurity will mar tlie 
whiteness of the eggs. When the water boils, break the 
eggs separately into a saucer. Take the frying-pan ofi", and 
slip the eggs, one by one, carefully upon the surface. When 
all are Hi, put back over the fire and boil gently three min- 
iites. Take out with a perforated skimmei', drain, and lay 
upon slices of buttered toast in a hot dish. Garnish with 
parsley, and dust with pepper and salt. 

Poached Eggs a la Creme, »J« 

Nearly fill a clean frying-pan with, strained water boil- 
ing-hot ; strain a tablespoonful of vinegar through double 
muslin, and add to the water with a little salt. Slip your 
eggs from the saucer upon the top of the water (first tak- 
ing the pan from the fire). Boil three minutes and a half, 
drain, and lay on buttered toast in a hot dish. Tui-n the 
water from the pan and pour in half a cupful of ci'eam or 
milk. If you use the latter, tliicken with a very little 
forn-otarch. Let it heat to a boil, stirring to j)i'event burn- 
ing, and add a great spoonful of butter, some pepper and 
salt. Boil up once, and pour over the eggs. A better way 
still is to heat the milk in a separate saucepan, that the 
eggs may not have to stand. A little broth improves the 
sauce, ^ 

Ham and Eggs. 

Fry the eggs in a little very nice salted lard ; drain off 
every drop of grease, and lay them upon a hot dish, with 
neat slices of fried ham around the edges, half the size of 
the slice as first carved from the ham. Trim off the rough 
edges of the eggs, and cut the ham evenly in oblong pieces^ 
before dishing. Gai'nish with parsley. 



EGGS. 



Fried Eggs, 



JMelt some butter in a frying-pan, and when it hisses. 
drop in the eggs carefully. Fry three minutes ; dust with 
pepper and salt, and transfer to a hot dish. 

Fricasseed Eggs. *^ 

Boil the eggs hard, cut in half crosswise, and take out 
the yolks. Chop these fine, or rub to a paste, with a little 
ground tongue or ham or cold fowl, some minced parsley, 
some melted butter, and a verr/ little made mustard. Work 
well together and fill the whites with it, setting them close 
together in a deep covered dish, the open ends up. Have 
ready some veal gravy or chicken broth ; heat to boiling in 
a saucepan with a half teaspoonful chopped parsley, salt, 
pepper, and lastly three tablespoonfvils of cream to a cup 
of broth. Boil up ; pour smoking hot over the eggs, let 
them stand five minutes, closely covered, and send to table. 

This is not an expensive dish. Eggs are always a 
cheaper breakfast-dish for a small family than meat, even 
at fifty cents a dozen. Six will make a nice quantity of 
the fricassee, and it is a delicious relish. Always di'op 
hard-boiled eggs into cold water as soon as they are done, 
to prevent the yolks from turning black. 

Breaded Eggs. »|^ 

Boil hard, and cut in round thick slices. Pepper and 
salt ; dip each in beaten raw egg, then in fine bread-crumbs 
or powdered cracker, and fry in nice dripping or butter, 
hissing hot. Di-ain off every drop of gi-ease, and serve on 
a hot dish for breakfast, with sauce, like that for fricasseed 
eggs, poured over them. 



256 common sense. 

Baked Eggs. 

Break six or seven eggs into a buttered dish, taking 
care tliat each is whole, and does not encroach upon the 
othei'S so much as to mix or disturb the yolks. Sprinkle 
with pepper and salt, and put a bit of butter vipon each. 
Put into an oven and bake until the whites are well set. 
Serve very hot, with rounds of buttered toast, or sand- 
wiches. 

Scrambled Eggs, i^ 

Put a good piece of butter in a frying-pan, and when it 
is hot drop in the eggs, which should be broken whole into 
a bowl. Stir in with them a little chopped parsley, some 
pepper and salt, and keep stirring to and fro, up and down, 
without cessation, for three minutes. Turn out at once 
into a hot dish, or upon buttered toast, and eat without 
delay. 

Chinese Bird's-Nest of Eggs. 

Make a white sauce as follows : Stew half a pound of 
lean veal, cut into strips, with a large sjirig of parsley, in a 
qi;art of water, until the meat is in rags, and the liquor 
reduced one-half. Strain through tai-latan or lace, and 
return to the saucepan with half a cujjful of milk. When 
it boils, thicken with a little rice or wheat flour, season 
with white pepper and salt, and the juice of half a lemon. 
Set in the corner to keep hot. Have ready six, or eight, 
or ten hard-boiled eggs. Take out the yolks carefully, and 
cut the whites into thin shreds. Pile the yolks in the cen- 
tre of a round, shallow dish, ai'ra,nge the shreds of white 
about them in the shape of a bird's-nest ; give a final stir 
to the sauce, and pour 'carefully over the eggs. It should 
not rise higher in the dish than half way to the top of the 
nest, when it flows down to its level. Garnish with pars- 
ley. 



EGGS. 257 

Scalloped Eggs. 4* 

Make a force-meat of chopped liam — ground is better — 
fine bread-crumbs, pepper, f?alt, a little minced parsley, and 
some melted butter. Moisten with milk to a soft paste, 
and half fill some patty-pans or scallop-shells with the mix- 
ture. Break an egg carefully upon the top of each, dust 
with pepper and salt, and sift some very finely powdered 
cracker over all. Set in the oven, and bake until the egga 
are loell set — about eight minutes. Eat hot. They ai-e 
very nice. You can substitute ground tongue for the ham. 

Poached Eggs, with Sauce. »J* 

Make the sauce by 2")utting half a cupful of hot water 

in a saucepan, with a teaspoonful of lemon-juice, three 

tablespoonfuls of veal or chicken broth (strained), pepper, 

salt, mace, and a tablespoonful of butter, with a little 

minced ' parsley. Boil slowly ten minutes, and stir in a 

well-whi})2>ed egg carefully, lest it should curdle. Have 

ready some poached eggs in a deep dish, and pour the sauce 

over them. 

Eggs upon Toast. »|« 

But a good lump of butter into the frying-pan. When 
it is hot, stir in four or five well-beaten eggs, with pepper, 
salt, and a little parsley. Stir and toss for three minutes. 
Have ready to your hand some slices of buttered toast (cut 
round with a tin cake-cutter before they are toasted) ; 
spread thickly with grovind or minced tongue, chicken, or 
ham. Heap the stirred egg upon these in mounds, and set 
in a hot dish garnished with parsley and pickled beets. 

Eggs au Lit {in heel). »^ 

Mince some cold fowl — chicken, turkey, or duck (01 
some cold boiled veal and ham in equal quantities) — very 



253 COMMOK SENSE. 

fine, and ruV> in a Wedgewood mortar, adding by degrees 
some melted butter, pepper, salt, minced parsley, and two 
beaten eggs. Warm in a frying-pan when it is well mixed, 
stirring in a little hot water should it dry too fast. Cook 
five minutes, stii-ring to keep it from scorching or brown- 
ing. Form, on a hot platter or flat dish, into a raoimd, flat 
on top, with a ridge of the mixture running all around. It 
is easily moulded with a broad-bladed knife. In the dish 
thus formed, on the top of the mince-meat, lay as many 
poached eggs as it will hold, sprinkling them with pepper 
and salt. Arrange triangles of buttered toast in such 
order, at the base of the mound, that they shall make a 
pointed wall against it. 

Devilled Eggs. 

Boil six or eight eggs hard ; leave in cold water until 
they are cold ; cut in halves, slicing a bit oflf the bottoms 
to make them stand upright, a la Columbus. Extract the 
yolks, and rub to a smooth paste with a very little melted 
butter, some cayenne pepper, a touch of mustard, and just 
a dash of vinegar. Fill the hollowed whites with this, and 
send to table upon a bed of chopped cresses, seasoned with 
pepper, salt, vinegar, and a little sugar. The salad should 
be two inches thick, and an egg be served with a heajjing 
tablespoonful of it. You may use lettuce or white cab- 
bage instead of cresses. 

Egg-Baskets, t^ 

Make these for breakfast the day after you have had 
roast chicken, duck, or turkey for dinner. Boil six eggs 
liard, cut neatly in half and extract the yolks. Bub these 
to a paste with some melted butter, pepper and salt, 
aid set aside. Bound the minced meat of the cold fowl 



EGGS. 



259 



fine in the same manner and mix with the egg-paste, moist- 
ening vntli melted butter as you proceed, or with a little 
gi*avy, if you have it to spare. Cut off a slice from the 
bottoms of the hollowed whites of the egg, to make them 
stand ; fill with the paste ; arrange close together upon a 
flat dish, and pour over them the gravy left from yester- 
day's roast, heated boiling hot, and mellowed by a few 
spoonfuls of cream or rich milk. 

Omelette {2)lam). »J« 

l^eat six eggs very light, the whites to a stiff froth that 
will stand alone, the yolks to a smooth thick batter. Add to 
the yolks a small cupful of milk, pepper and salt, lastly stir 
in the whites lightly. Have ready in a hot frying-pan a good 
lump of butter. When it hisses, pour in your mixture gen- 
tly and set over a clear fire. It should cook in ten minutea 
at most. Do not stir, but contrive, as the eggs " set," to 
slip a broad-bladed knife under the omelette to guard against 
burning at the bottom. The instant " hiss " of the butter 
as it flows to the hottest part of the pan will prove the wis- 
dom and efficacy of the precaution. If your oven is hot, 
you may put the frying-pan in it as soon as the middle of 
the omelette is set. "When done, lay a hot dish bottom up- 
ward on the top of the pan, and dexterously upset the latter 
to bring the browned side of the omelette uppermost. Eat 
soon, or it will fall. 

I know these directions to be worthy of note. I have 
never seen lighter or better omelettes anywhere than in 
households where these have been the rule for years in the 
manufacture of this simple and delightful article of food. 

Omelette witp Ham, Tongue, or Chicken. 4* 

Make precisely as above ; but when it is done, scatter 
thickly over the surface some minced ham, tongue, or sea 



260 COMMON SENSE. 

soiled chicken, slip your broad knife tinder one side of the 
omelette and double in half, enclosing the meat. Then up 
set the frying-pan upon a hot dish. • 

Or, 

You can stir the minced meat into the omelette after 
all the ingredients are put together, adding, if you Kke, 
some chopped parsley. 

Cauliflower Omelette. 

Chop some cold cauliflower very iine, and mix in when 
your omelette is ready to go into the pan. Season highly 
with cayenne pepper and salt. 

Asparagus Omelette 

Is made of the tops only, minced and seasoned, and stirred 
in as is the cauliflower. Tomato omelette has stewed 
tomato spread over the surface, and is then doubled in 
half. 

Egg-balls for Soup. J^ 

Rub the yolks of three or four hard-boiled eggs to a 
smooth paste with a very little melted butter, pepper, and 
salt. To these add two raw ones, beaten light, and enough 
flour to hold the paste together. Make into balls with 
floured hands and set in a cool place until just before your 
soup comes ofi", when put in carefully and boil one minute. 

Omelette aux Fines Herbes. 

After the yolks and whites are mixed together with the 
mUk, stir in, with two or three strokes of the spoon or 
whisk, two tablespoonfuls of chopped parsley, gi-een thyme, 
and sweet marjoram, with pepper and salt. Fry instantly 



bweet omelettes. 261 

Cheese Omelette. 

Orate some rich old cheese, and having mixed the on.e- 
lette as usual, stir in the cheese with a swift turn or two 
of the whisk, and at the same time some chopped parsley 
and thyme. If you beat long the cheese will separate the 
Cook at once. 

Sweet Omelettes. 

Omelette Soufflee — [Fried). 

6 eggs. 

4 tablespoonfuls sugar (powdered). 

1 teaspoonful of vanilla. 

2 tablespoonfuls butter. 

Beat the whites and yolks separately. Add the sugar 
to the yolks, a little at a time, beating very thoroughly, 
until they are smooth and tliick. The whites should stand 
alone. Put two tablespoonfuls of butter in a frying-pan, 
heat to boiling, and when you have added the vanilla to 
the omelette, pour it in and cook very quickly, as you 
would a plain one. Slip the knife frequently under it, to 
loosen from the sides and bottom. It is more apt to scorch 
than an omelette without sugar. Turn out upon a very 
not dish, sift powdered sugar over the top. and serve ia- 
Btantly, or it will fall and become heavy 

Omelette Soufflee — [leaked). 

6 eggs. 

6 tablespoonfvils of powdered sugar. 

Juice of a lemon and half the peel, grated. 

Beat yolks and whites separately and very well. Add 
to the yolks by degrees the powdered sugar, and beat until 
it ceases to froth, and is thick and smooth. The whitear 



2G3 COMMON SENSE. 

should be stiff enough to cut with a knife. Stir together 
lightly with the seasoning, pour into a well-buttered dish, 
and bake in a quick oven five or six minutes. The dish 
should be warmed when it is buttered, not to chill the 
eggs. Send around with a spoon, and let each one help 
himself before it can fall. 

Apple Omelette. *J« 

6 large pippins. 

1 tablespoonful butter. 

3 eggs. 

5 or 6 tablespoonfuls sugar. 

Nutmeg to taste. 

1 teaspoonful rosewater. 

Stew the apples, when you have pared. and cored them, 
as for apple-sauce. Beat them very smooth while hot, ad- 
ding the butter, sugar, and nutmeg. When j^erfectly cold, 
put with the eggs, which should be whipped light, yolks 
and whites separately. Put in the yolks first, then the 
rosewater, lastly the whites, and pour into a deep bake- 
dish, which has been warmed and buttej-ed. Bake in a 
moderate oven until it is delicately browned. Eat warm 
— not hot — for tea, with Graham bread. It is better for 
children — I say nothing of their elders — than cake and pre* 
serves. 

Omelette with Jelly. 

Currant or other tart jelly. 

Five eggs. 

4 tablespoonfuls cream, or the same of milk, thick- 
ened with a teaspoonful of rice-flour or arrow- 
root. 

2 tablespoonfuls powdered sugar. 

1 teaspoonful bitter almond or vanilla flavoring. 



MILK, BUTTEK, CHEESE, ETC. 263 

Beat whites and yolks separately, adding to the lattex* 
the sugar and milk after they are thick and smooth. Next, 
chop in the seasoning ; lastly, stir in the whites with a few 
swift strokes. Put a large spoonful of butter in the fry- 
ing-pan, and, when it is hot, pour in the omelette. Spread 
upon it when done, which will be in a very few minutes, 
some nice jelly. Take the pan from the fii-e to do this, 
spread quickly, slip your knife or tin spatula under one- 
half of the omelette, and double'it over. Turn over on a 
hot platter, sift powdered sugar upon it, and eat at once. 

Milk, Butter, Cheese, etc. 

A cool cellar is the best place in which to keep milk, 
^ if you have no dairy or milk-room. Strain it into broad 
shallow pans, which are lukewarm from recent scalding. 
You can get them made in one piece, with no seams in 
which sour cream or dirt may lurk unsuspected. Set upon 
swing shelves, to avoid the possibilities of drowned mice, 
and keep the cellar dark to save it from flies. In twelve 
hours skim for the table, and, unless you have need of the 
milk, let it stand twelve hours more for the second rising 
of cream. Put this into the stone jar or crock in which 
the cream is kept for churning. Even in butter-making, I 
have found it a good plan to take ofi" at night the cream 
clean from the morning churning, instead of letting it stand 
twenty-four hours, as is the usual custom. The " second 
rising " will repay one for the additional trouble. Churn 
as soon aS convenient after the cream " loppers " or tliick- 
ens. If it stand too long, it becomes bitter or musty. The 
churn should be well scalded and aired between the churn- 
ings. Scrupulous cleanliness should be the unbending rule 
of dairy arrangements. All strongly-flavored siibstances 
must be kept from the neighborhood of milk and butter. 
They are ready absorbents, and when they contract odor ot 



264 COMMON SENSE. 

taste, never get rid of it. Have earthen and tin milk -ves- 
sels, and never allow them to be put to any other use. 

Scald the chui-n, and cool with ice or spring water; 
pour in the thick cream. Churn rather fast, until the but- 
ter-flakes, left by the dasher upon the top, show that the 
end to be gained is near — then more slowly. The motion 
should always be regular. In warm weather pour a little 
cold water into the churn, should the butter come slowly. 
Take it up with the perforated dasher, turning it dexter- 
ously just below the surface of the butter-milk, to catch 
every stray bit. Have ready some clean, very cold water, 
in a deep wooden tray, and into tliis plunge the dasher 
when you draw it from the churn. The butter will float 
off, leaving the dasher free. Having collected every par- 
ticle, gather behind a wooden butter-shovel and drain off" 
the water, squeezing and pressing the butter with the shovel. 
Set in a cool place for an hour to harden — a necessary meas- 
ure in sumrner — then work and knead it with a wooden ladle 
until not another drop of water exudes, and the butter is like 
yellow marble in polish and closeness of pores. When you 
have worked out the butter-milk, add by degrees fine salt, 
in the proportion of a dessertspoonful to every po\md. 
Then set aside for some hours, always in a cool place. The 
last working is a slight aftair, comparatively. Still using 
the paddle, and never, from beginning to end of the oj-tera- 
tion, touching with your hands, mould into rolls or pound 
" pats." Mark with grooves or checkers with the ladle, 
or stamp with a print. Wrap each roll in a clean wet 
linen cloth, which has no touch of soap or starch about it, 
and pack in a stone jar, sprinkling a little salt between the 
layers. 

If you wish to keep it a long time, work with especial 
care, and pack down hard in a perfectly clean stone jar. 
Do not, above all things, take one that has ever been used 



MILK, BUTTEK, CHEESE, ETC. 265 

for pickles. You may not detect the fixintest odoi' linger- 
ing about it, but the butter will, and absorb it, too. Some 
cover the butter -ndth strong brine, but a better way is to 
press a fine linen cloth closely to the surface, and cover 
this with a thick layer of clean fine salt. Set in a cool, 
dry place, and keep the cloth over it all the time ; also a 
tightly-fitting lid. AVhen you begin to use it, take out 
enough to last a week, and re-cover. If you admit the air 
every day, it is apt to grow strong. A pretty plate of but- 
ter for the table is made of balls half the size of an egg, 
rolled in the little fluted paddles sold for the purpose. 

Bonny-Clabber, or Loppered Milk. *^ 

Set a china or glass dish of skimmed milk away in a 
warm place, covered. When it turns — i. e., becomes a 
smooth, firm, but not tough cake, like blanc-mange — serve 
in the same dish. Cut out carefully with a large spoon, 
and put in saucers, with cream, powdered sugar, and nut- 
meg to taste. It is better, if set on the ice for an hour be- 
fore it is brought to table. Do not let it stand until the 
whey separates from the curd. 

Few people know how deliciovis this healthful and cheap 
dessert can be made, if eaten before it becomes tart and 
tough, with a liberal allowance of cream and sugar. There 
are not many jellies and creams superior to it. 

Rennet. 

Clean the stomach of a calf (or have your butcher do 
it for you) so soon as it is killed, scouring inside and out 
with salt. When perfectly clean, tack ujion a frame to dry 
in the sun for a day. Cut in squares, and pack down in 
salt, or keep in wine or brandy. When you wish to use 
the salted, soak half an hour in cold watei, wash well, and 
12 



266 COMMON SENSE. 

put into tlie milk to be turned, tied to a string, that it may 
be drawn out without breaking the curd. The liquor ren- 
net sold by druggists is sometimes good, quite as often 
worthless. You can, however, get the dried or salted in 
the markets, and often in the drug-stores. 

Mountain Custard, or Junket. >^ 

Take a piece of rennet an inch long, or a teaspoonful 
of the wine in which rennet is kept, to each quart of milk. 
Season with vanilla or lemon, a little nutmeg, and a table- 
spoonful of sugar to each quart. More will retard the 
formation. Set in a warm place — near the fire, or on the 
kitchen table — closely covered. Look at it from time to 
time, and if, in the course of an hour, there are no signs 
of stiffening, add more rennet. When it is firm, like blanc- 
mange, and before the whey separates from the curd, re- 
move the rennet, and set ujjon ice until it is wanted. Serve 
with powdered sugar and cream. 

Thickened Milk. 

Boil a quart of milk, add a very little salt, and two 
tablespoonfuls of rice or wheat flovu* wet in cold milk. 
Stir in smoothly, and let it thicken in a vessel of boiling 
water, keeping the outer saucepan at a hard boil for half 
an hour. Eat with butter and sugar, or with cream and 
sugar. For invalids, or children who are suffering with 
summer disorders, boil at least an hour, stirring very often. 

Cheese. 

I have doubted the utility of inserting a receipt for 
regular cheese-making. The apparatus necessary for the 
manufactiire is seldom, if evei', found in a private family, 
while cheese can be had in every country store at one-thii'd 
the expense to an amateur of making it. But, remember* 



MILK, BUTTER, CHEESE, ETC. 267 

ing that it may be a pleasant, if not profitable experiment, 
for the mistress of many cows to make at her odd moments, 
I have secured what pmrports to be an exact description of 
*' cheese-making on a small scale." 

To each gallon of milk warm from the cow, add a piece of 
rennet six inches long and three wide, or two tablespoonfula 
rennet-water — i. e., water in which rennet has been boiled. 
Cover, and set in a warm place until it becomes a firm curd ; 
this should be, at the most, not more than three-quarters of 
an hour. When the whey has separated entirely, and looka 
clear and greenish, wash your hands very clean, and with 
them gently press all the curd to one side of the pan or tub, 
while an assistant dips out the whey. Have ready a stout 
linen bag, pour the curd into it, and hang it up to dry 
until not another drop of whey can be pressed 'out; then 
put the curd into a wooden dish, and chop it fine. Empty 
into a finer bag, and pvit into a small cheese-box, or other 
circular wooden box with a perforated bottom, and a lid 
that slides down easily but closely on the inside. Your 
bag should be as nearly as possible the same shape and 
size as this box. Lay heavy weights upon the top, in lack 
of a cheese-press, and let it stand an hour. The cloth 
should be wet inside as well as out, before jow put the 
curds in. At the end of the hour, take out the cheese 
and chop again, adding salt this time. Have ready a fresh 
wet cloth ; pack in the curd hard. There should be a cir- 
cular cover for this bag, which must be basted all around, 
and very smooth on top. Scald the box and cover, then 
rinse with cold water, and put tlie cheese again under 
press for twelve hours. Next day, take it out, rub all 
over with salt, and fit on a clean wet cloth. Look at it 
sixteen hours later, pare off the ]-ough edges, and scrape 
the sides of inequalities before returning to the jiress for 
the last time. Let it remain under the weights for twenty- 



268 COMMON "SENSE. 

four hours. Strip off tlie cloth, rub the cheese •well with 
butter, and lay upon a clean cloth spread on a shelf in a 
cool, dry place. A wire safe is best. Wipe clean ; then 
rub every day with butter for a week, and turn also every 
twenty-four hours. At the end of the week, omit the 
greasing, and rub hard with a coarse cloth. Do this every 
day for a month. Your cheese will then be eatable, but 
it will be much finer six months later. 

Stilton cheeses — renowned over the world — are buried 
in dry heather when they are firm enough to remove from 
the shelves, and kept there a month. This is called 
" ripening." 

Cottage Cheese. 

Heat spur milk until the whey rises to the top. Pour 
it otF, put the curd in a bag and let it drip six hours, with- 
out squeezing it. Put in a wooden bowl, chop fine with a 
wooden spoon, salt to taste, and work to the consistency of 
soft putty, adding a little cream and butter as you pro- 
ceed. Mould with your hands into round " pats" or balls, 
and keep in a cool place. It is best when fresh. 

Cream Cheese. 

Stir a little salt into a pan of " loppered " cream. Pour 
into a linen bag, and let it drain three days, changing the 
bag every day. Then pack into a wooden cup or mould 
with holes in the bottom, and press two hours. Wet the 
mould with cold water before putting in the cream-curd. 
Wrapped in soft white paper — two or three folds of tissue- 
paper will do — to exclude the air, they will keep in a 
cool place for a week. 

This is the cheese sold in this country under the nama 
of Nenfcliatd, 



BKEAD. 269 

BREAD. 

If eminence of importance entitled a subject to preemi 
nence of position, that of which we are now about to speak 
should have stood foremost in this work. It is not a pleas- 
ant thing to think or write about, but it is a stubborn fact 
that upon thousands of tables, in otherwise comfortable 
homes, good bread is an unknown phenomenon. I say phe- 
nomenon, because it would indeed be a marvellous estrange- 
ment of cause and effect were indifferent floiir, unskilfully- 
mixed with flat yeast, badly risen and negligently baked, to 
result in that pride of the notable housekeeper — light, sweet, 
wholesome bread. I know a household where sour, stiff 
bread is the rule, varied several times during the week by 
muffins scented and colored with soda, clammy biscuit, and 
leathery griddle-cakes ; another, where the bread is inva- 
riably over-risen, and consequently tasteless, sometimes 
slightly acid ; yet another in which home-made bread is not 
used at all, because it is " so troublesome and uncertain," 
the mistress preferring to feed her family, growing children 
and all, upon the vari-colored sponges bought at the bakers 
— sponges inflated with sal volatile, flavoi'less, and dry as 
chips when a day old, and too often betraying, in the dark 
streaks running through the interior of the loaf, want of 
cleanliness in the kneader. Yet these are all well-to-do 
people, who submit to these abominations partly because 
they do not know how badly off they are — chiefly because 
it is their way of doing, and they see no reason for chang- 
ing. " I have been a housekeeper for thirty years, and have 
always mixed my bread just so," retorted a mistress once, 
when I mildly set forth the advantages of " setting a sponge" 
over-night. "I put in flour, yeast, and milk if I have it, 
and give them a good stir ; then set the dough down to rise. 
Our folks don't fancy very light bread. There don't seem 



270 COSIMON SENSE. 

to be any substance in it — so to speak. Mine generally 
turns out pretty nice. It's all luck, after all, about bread." 

" I'm told you have a receipt for making bread," laugh- 
ed another to me ; " I never heard of such a thing in my 
life, and I've been keeping house eighteen years. So I 
thought I'd call and ask you for it — ^just as a curiosity, 
you know. I want to see what it is like." 

I wisely kept my thoughts to myself, and dictated the 
receipt, which she jotted down in a memorandum-book, 
laughing all the while at the " excellent joke." 

" You really use this ? " she demanded, when this was 
done. 

" I do. I have used no other for many years." 

" And the bread I ate upon your table, the other night, 
was made according to this ? " 

Again an affii-mative answer. 

" I guess your cook could tell another story," rejoined 
the skeptic. " You can't make me believe that bread is 
made by rule. I put my materials together anyhow, and I 
have as good luck as most of my neighbors." 

I regarded my visitor as an importinent simpleton ; but 
I have been amazed, in subsequent years, at finding that her 
creed is that of hundreds of housewives moi-e or less sensi- 
ble. " Luck " rules the baking, and upon the shoulders of 
this Invisible are laid the deficiencies of the complacent 
cook. Cheap flour and laziness are at the bottom of more 
mishaps in the bread line than any other combination of 
circumstances. From the inferior grades of flour, it is pos- 
sible to make tolerable biscuit, crumpets, and mufiins, plain 
pastry, and very good gviddle-cakes. You cannot, by any 
stress of art, produce excellent bread from poor flour. It 
is no economy to purchase it for this purpose. It is judici- 
ous to lay in two barrels at a time, and to use the best only 
for the semi- or tri-weekly baking. 



BREAD. 271 

Chiefesfc tlien among the conditions to good bread, I 
place good "family" flour — dry, elastic, and odorless, 
Whiteness is a secondary consideration, although, to Ameri- 
can eyes, this is a recommendation. A little experience 
will teach you to detect the signs that foretell satisfactory 
baking-days, and vice versd. If in handling the flour yoxi 
discern a heaviness like that of ground plaster ; if in squeez 
ing a handful tightly you discover that it retains the im 
print of palm and fingers, and rolls back into the tray a 
compact ball or roll ; if it is in the least musty, or sour, 
use it very sparingly in your trial-baking, for the chances 
are as ten to one that you Avill head the barrel up again 
and return it to your grocer. 

Sometimes new flour can be ripened for use by sifting 
enough for each baking into a large tray, and exposing it to 
the hot sun for some hours, or by setting it upon the kitch- 
en hearth for the same time. And it not unfrequently hap- 
pens that flour improves greatly after the barrel has been 
open for sevei-al days or weeks. It dries out and becomes 
lighter, more elastic. Next in importance to the quality 
of the flour is that of the yeast. This should be light in 
color and lively, effervescing easily when shaken, and emit- 
ting an odor like weak ammonia. If dull or sour, it is bad. 
In cities, it is easiest, perhaps cheapest, to buy yeast from 
a brewery or bakery, exercising your discrimination as to 
quality ; unless you can satisfy yourself in this regard, you 
had better make your own. I can confidently recommend 
the receipts given in this work as easy and safe, having 
tried them in my own family. 

Novices in bread-making, and many who should havo 
learned better by long experience, fall into a sad mistake 
in the consistency of the dough. It should be mixed as 
eoft as it can he handled. Bread will rise sooner and high- 
er, be lighter and more digestible, and keep fresh much 



273 COMMON SENSE. 

longer, if tliis rule be followed. Stiff bread is close in tex« 
tiire, often waxy to tbe teeth, and after a day or so becomes 
very bard. 

Set tbe dougb to rise in a moderately warm place, and 
keep it at an even temperature. Tbere is force in tbe old 
lament — " My bread took cold, last nigbt." Cold arrests 
tbe process of fermentation. Tbere is a cbance, sbould tbis 
occur, tbat a removal to a more genial atmospbere and care- 
ful nursing may cure tbe congestion, sbould it be only par- 
tial. Too mucb beat carries forward the work too rapidly. 
In tbis case, you will find your dougb puffy and sour. Cor- 
rect tbe latter evil by dissolving a little soda or saleratus 
in hot water, and working it well in. 

Knead your bread faithfully and from all sides, until 
it rebounds like india-rubber after a smart blow of tbe fist 
upon tbe centre of tbe mass. 

Tbe oven sbould not be too hot. If you cannot bold 
your bare arm within it while you count thirty, it is too 
quick. Keep tbe beat steady after the bread goes in. Too 
mucb fire at first, and rapid cooling, produce the eftect upon 
tbe bread which is technically called " slack-baked," i. e., 
tbe inside of the loaf is never properly done. Practice and 
intelligent observation, will, in time, make you an adep^ 
in tbe management of your ovens. If tbe bread rises rapid- 
ly while baking, and tbe crust begins to form before tbe 
lower part of tbe loaf is baked, cover tbe top with clean 
paper until you are ready to brown it. 

Grate away the burned portions of tbe crust, sbould 
there be such. This is better than chipping with a knife. 
One of tbe best bread-makers I know bakes in round pans, 
each loaf by itself, and grates tbe whole outer surface, top, 
bottom, and sides, quickly and lightly, toning down tbe 
brown to a uniform and pleasing tint. Tilt yovir loaves 
upon the edge, tbe lower part resting upon tbe table, tba 



BREAD. 273 

upper supported by the wall or other upright object, and 
tlirow a coarse dry cloth over them until they cool. 
This position allows the air to get at all sides, and prevents 
" sweating." A tin bread-box is best, with a cloth at bot- 
tom and enwrapping the loaves. 

Yeast {Hop). »J« 

4 large potatoes, or six small. 
2 quarts cold water. 
Double-handful hops, tied in a coarse 

muslin bag. 
4 tablespoonfuls flour. 
2 white sugar. 

Peel the potatoes, and put them with the hop-bag into 
a saucepan containing two quarts cold water. Cover and 
boil lentil the potatoes break and fall apart. Take these 
out with a perforated skimmer, leaving the water still boU- 
ing, mash them fine with a potato-beetle, and work in thu 
flour and sugar. Moisten this gradually with the boiling 
hop tea, stirring it to a smooth paste. When all the tea 
has been mixed in, set it aside to cool. While still slightly 
warm, add four tablespoonfuls of lively yeast, and turn all 
into a lai-ge open vessel to " work." Keep this in a warm 
place until it ceases to bubble up, or until next day. In 
summer it will work well in a few hours. When quite 
light, put in earthen jars with small mouths, in which fit 
corks, or bottle it, and I'emove to ice-house or cellar. It 
will keep good for a fortnight — longer in winter. 

When you wish to use it for baking, send a small vessel 
to the cellar for the desired quantity, and re-cork at once, 
A half-hour in a hct kitchen may spoil it. 
12* 



274 COMMON SENSE. 

Yeast {Self -working). 
8 potatoes. 
2 ounces liops. 
4 quarts cold water. 
1 lb. flour. 
I" lb. white sugar. 
1 tablespoonful salt. 

" Tie the hops in a coarse muslin bag, and boil one houT 
in four quarts of water. Let it cool to lukewarmness be- 
fore removing the bag. Wet with the tejiid liquor — a little 
at a time — the flour, making to a smooth paste. Put in 
the sugar and salt, beat up the batter three minutes before 
adding the rest of the tea. Set it away for two days in an 
open bowl covered with a thin cloth, in a closet which is 
moderately and evenly warm. 

On the third day, peel, boil, and mash the potatoes, and 
when entirely free from lumps and specks, stir in grad- 
ually the thickened hop-liquor. Let it stand twelve hours 
longer in the bowl, stirring often, and keeping it in the 
warm kitchen. Then bottle or put away in corked jars, 
which must be perfectly sweet and freshly scalded. This 
will keep a month in a cool cellar. It is more troublesome 
to make it than other kinds of yeast, but it needs no other 
" rising " to excite fei'mentation, and remains good longer 
than that made in the usual way. 

Yeast {Potato). ^ 

6 potatoes. 

2 quarts cold water. 

4 tablespoonful s flour. 

2 " white sugar. 

Peel and boil the potatoes until they break. Leaving 
the wa';er on the fii-e, take them out and mash fine with the 



BREAD. 275 

floi;r and sugar, wetting gradually with tlie hot water until it 
is all used. When lukewarm, add a gill of good yeast, and 
set aside in an open vessel and warm place to ferment. 
When it ceases to effervesce, bottle and set in ice-house. 

This yeast is very nice and white, and is preferred by 
many who dislike the bitter taste of hops. It is also con 
venient to make when hops cannot be obtained. 

Yeast Cakes, i^ 

2 quarts water (cold). 

1 quart pared and sliced potatoes. 

Double-handful hops, tied in coarse muslin bag. 

Flour to make stiff batter. 

1 cup Indian meal. 

Boil the potatoes and hop-bag in two quarts of water 
for three-quarters of an hour. Remove the hops, and while 
boiling hot, strain the potatoes and water through a cidlen- 
der into a bowl. Stir into the scalding liquor enough flour 
to make a stiff batter. Beat all up well ; add two table- 
spoonfxils lively yeast and set in a warm place to rise. 
When light, stir in a cup of Indian meal, roll into a sheet 
a quarter of an inch thick and cut into round cakes. Dry 
these in the hot sun or in a very moderate oven, taking 
care they do not heat to baking. It is best to put them in 
after the fire has gone down for the night, and leave them 
in until morning. When entirely dry and cold, hang them 
up in a bag in a cool, dry place. 

Use one cake three inches in diameter for a loaf of fair 
size ; soak in tepid water until soft, and add a pinch of soda 
or saleratus, then mix. 

These cakes will remain good a month in summer, two 
in winter. 



276 common sense. 

Baking Powders. 
1 ounce siiper-carbonate soda. 
7 drachms tartaric acid. 

KoU smoothly and mix thoroughly. Keep in a tight 
glass jar or bottle. Use one teaspoonful to a quart of flour. 

Or, 

12 teaspoonfuls carb. soda. 
24 " cream tartar. 

Put as above, and use in like proportion. 

Bread Sponge {Potato). »{« 
6 potatoes, boiled and mashed fine while hot. 
G tablespoonfuls baker's yeast. 
2 " white sugar. 

2 " lard. 
1 teaspoonful soda. 

1 quart warm — not hot — water. 

3 cups flour. 

Mash the potatoes, and work in the lard and sugar. 
Stir to a cream, mixing in gradually a qiiart of the water 
in which the potatoes were boiled, which should have been 
poured out to cool down to blood warmth. Heat in the 
flour, already wet up with a little potato-water to prevent 
lumping, then the yeast, lastly the soda. Cover lightly if 
the weather is warm, more closely in winter, and set to rise 
over night in a warm place. 

Bread Sponge {Plain). »^ 

1 quart warm water. 

6 tablespoonfids baker's yeast. 

2 " lard. 

2 " white sugar. 



EKEAD. 277 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

Flour to make a soft batter. 

Melt the lard in the warm water, add the sugar, then the 
flour by degrees, stirring in smoothly. A quart and a pint 
of flour will usually be sufficient if the quality is good. 
Next comes the yeast, lastly the soda. Beat up hard for 
several minutes, and set to rise as above. 

Bread mixed "with potato-sponge is more nutritious, 
keeps fresh longer, and is sweeter than that made with the 
plainer sponge. But there are certain seasons of the year 
when good old potatoes cannot be procured, and new ones 
will not do for this purpose. 

The potato-sponge is safer, because surer for beginners 
in the imj^ortant art of bread-making. After using it for 
fifteen years, I regard it as almost infallible — given the 
conditions of good flour, yeast, kneading, and baking. 

Family Bread ( White). *J« 

Having set your sponge over night, or, if you bake late 
in the afternoon, early in the morning, sift dry flour into a 
deep bread-tray, and strew a few spoonfuls of fine salt over 
it. The question of the quantity of flour is a delicate one, 
requiring judgment and experience. Vai-ious brands of 
flour are so unequal with respect to the quantity of gluten 
they contain, that it is impossible to give any invariable rule 
on this subject. It will be safe, however, to sift two quarts 
and a pint, if you have set the potato sponge ; two quarts for 
the plain. This will make two good-sized loa'^'es. Make a 
hole in the middle of the heap, pour in the risen sponge 
(which should be very light and seamed in many places on 
the top), and work down the flour into it with your hands. 
If too soft, add moi'e flour. If you can movild it at all, it 
is not too soft. If stifi", rinse out the bowl in which the 



278 COMMON SEK8E. 

sponge was set with a little lukewarm water, and work thia 
in. When you have it in manageable shape, begin to knead, 
Work the mass into a ball — your hands having been well 
floui-ed from the first ; detach it from the tray, and lift it 
in your left hand, wliile you sprinkle flour ^vith the right 
thickly over the bottom and sides of the tray. Toss back 
the ball into this, and knead hard — always toward the 
centre of the mass, which should be repeatedly turned over 
and around, that every portion may be manipulated. Brisk 
and long kneading makes the pores fine and regular. Gap- 
ing holes of diverse sizes are an unerring tell-tale of a care- 
less cook. Spend at least twenty minutes — half an hour is 
better — in this kind of useful gymnastics. It is grand ex- 
ercise for arms and chest. This done, work the dough into 
a shapely ball in the centre of the tray, sprinkle flour over 
the top ; throw a cloth over all and leave it on the kitchen- 
table to rise, taking care it is not in a drauglit of cold air. 
In summer, it will rise in four or five hours — in winter, six 
are often necessary. It should come vip steadily until it at 
least trebles its original bulk and the floured surface cracks 
all over. Knead again for ten or fifteen minutes. Then, 
divide it into as many parts as you wish loaves, and put 
these in well-greased pans for the final rising. In a large 
household baking, it is customary to mould the dough into 
oblong rolls, three or four, according to the number of 
loaves you desire, and to lay these close together in one 
large pan. The second kneading is done upon a floured 
board, and should be thorough as the first, the dough being 
continually shifted and tu.rned. Set the pans in a warm 
place for an hour longer, Avith a cloth thrown over them to 
keep out the air and dust. Then bake, heeding the direc- 
tions set down in the article upon bread in general. If your 
ovens arc in good condition, one hour should bake the above 
T[uantitiy of bread. But here again experience must be 



BREAD 279 

your guide. Note carefully for yourself liow long a time 
is requii'ed for your first successful baking, as also how 
much dry flour you have worked into your sponge, and let 
these data regulate future action. I have known a vai-ia- 
tion of two quarts in a large baking, over the usual measure 
of flour. I need not tell you that yovi had better shun a 
brand that requires such an excessive quantity to bring the 
dough to the right consistency. It is neither nutritioiis nor 
economical. When you make o\it the loaves, prick the top 
with a fork. 

Do not make your first baking too large. Practice is 
requisite to the management of an unwieldy mass of dough. 
Let your trial-loaf be with say half the quantity of sponge 
and flour I have set do\vn, and increase these as skill and 
occasion require, carefully preserving the proportions. Seven 
or eight quarts of flour will be needed for the semi-weekly 
baking of a family of moderate size. 

If I have seemed needlessly minute in the directions I 
have laid down, it is because I wish to be a guide, not a 
betrayer, and because I am deeply impressed with the worth 
of such advice as may tend to diminish the number of those 
who know not for themselves the comfort and delight of 
eating from day to day, and year to year, good family bread. 

Famii-y Bread {Broion). *J«« 

I wsh it were in my power, by much and earnest 
speaking and writing, to induce every housekeeper to 
make brown bread — that is, bread made of unbolted, usu- 
ally called Graham flour — a staple article of diet in her fam- 
ily. I only repeat the declaration of a majority of our best 
chemists and physicians when I say that our American 
fondness for fine white bread is a serious injury to oui 
health. We bolt and rebolt our flour until we extract 
from it three-quarters of its nutritive qualities, leaving 



280 COMMON SENSE. 

little strength in it except what lies in gluten or starch, 
and consign that which makes bone and tissue, which regu 
lates the digestive organs, and leaves the blood pure, the 
brain clear, to the lower animals. Growing children es- 
pecially should eat brown bread daily. It supplies the 
needed phosphate to the tender teeth and bones. If prop- 
erly made, it soon commends itself to their taste, and white 
becomes insipid in comparison. Dyspeptics have long been 
familiar with its dietetic virtues, and, were the use of it 
more general, we should have fewer wi'etches to mourn 
over the destroyed coats of their stomachs. It is whole- 
some, sweet, honest, and should be popular. 

Prepare a sponge as for white bread, using potatoes 
or white flour. My rule is to take out a certain quantity 
of the risen sponge on baking day, and set aside for brown 
bread. Put into a tray two parts Graham flour, one-third 
white, and to every quart of this allow a handful of Indian 
meal, with a teaspoonful of salt. Wet tliis up with the 
sponge, and when it is mixed, add, for a loaf of fair size, 
half a teacupful of molasses. The dough should be very 
soft. If there is not enough of the sponge to reduce it to 
the desu'ed consistency, add a little blood-warm water. 
Knead it diligently and long. It will not rise so rapidly 
as the white flour, having more " body " to carry. Let it 
take its time ; make into round, comfortable loaves, and 
set down again for the second rising, when you have again 
kneaded it. Bake steadily, taking care it does not burn, 
and do not cut while hot. The result will well repay jovi 
for your trouble. It will take a longer time to bake than 
white bread. Brown flour should not be sifted. 

Boston Brown Bread. 

Set a sponge over night, with potatoes or white flour, 
in the following proportions : — 



BREAD. 281 

1 cup yeast. 

6 potatoes, mashed fine ■with thi-ee cups of flour. 

1 quart waim water. 

2 tablesjjoonfuls lard (or, if you leave out the potatooSi 
one quart of warm water to three joints of flour). 

2 tablespoonfuls brown sugar. 

Beat ujj "well, and let it rise five or six hours. 
When light, sift into the bread-tray — 

1 quart rye- flour. 

2 quarts Indian meal. 
1 tablespoonful salt. 

1 teasjioonful soda, or saleratus. 

Mix this up very soft with the risen sponge, addirg 
warm water, if needed, and working in gradually 
Half a teacupful of molasses. 

Knead well, and let it rise from six to seven hours. 
Then wox"k over again, and divide into loaves, putting these 
in well-greased, round, deep pans. The second rising should 
last an hour, at the end of which time bake in a moderate 
oven about four hours. Rapid baking will ruin it. If 
put in late in the day, let it stay in the oven all night. 

Rye Bread. 

Set a sponge, as above, but with half the quantity of 
water. 

In the morning mix with this : 
1 quart warm milk. 
1 tablespoonful salt. 
1 cup Indian meal. 
And enough rye flour to make it into pliable dough. 

Proceed as with wheat bread, baking it a little longer. 



282 COMMON SENSE. 

It is a mistake to suppose that acidity, greater or less, 
is the normal state of rye bread. If you find your dough 
in the slightest degi-ee sour, correct by adding a teaspoou- 
ful of soda dissolved in warm water. It is safest to add 
this always in warm weather. 

Milk Bread. 

1 quart of milk. 

•^ teacupful of yeast. 

^ lb. butter, one tablespoonful white sugar. 

Stir into the milk, which should be made blood-warm, 
a pint of flour, the sugar, lastly the yeast. Beat all to- 
gether well, and let them rise five or six hours. Then 
melt the butter, and add with a little salt. Work in flour 
enough to make a stifi" dough ; let this rise four hours, and 
make into small loaves. Set near the fire for half an hour, 
and bake. 

In warm weather, add a teaspoonful soda, dissolved in 
warm water, to the risen sponge, as all bread mixed with 
milk is apt to sour. 

Buttermilk Bread. 

1 pint buttermilk heated to scalding. 

Stir in, while it is hot, enough flour to make a tolerably 
thick batter. Add half a gill of yeast, and let it rise five 
or sLx hours. If you make it over night you need not add 
the yeast, but put in, instead, a tablespoonful white sugar. 
In the morning, stir into the sponge a teaspoonful soda 
dissolved in hot water, a little salt, and two tablespoonfuls 
melted butter. Work in just flour enough to enable you 
to handle the dough comfortably ; knead well, make into 
loaves, and let it rise until light. 

This makes very white and wholesome bread. 



BKEAD. 283 

EicE Bread. 
Make a sponge of — 

1 quart warm water. 
1 teacupfiil yeast. 

1 tablespoonful white sugar. 

2 " lard. 
1 quai't wheat flour. 

Beat well together, and when it has risen, which will be 
in about five hours, add three pints of warm milk and three 
teacupfuls rice-flour wet to a thin paste with cold milk, 
and boiled four minutes as you would starch. This should 
be a little more than blood-warm when it is stirred into the 
batter. If not thick enough to make out into dough, add a 
little wheat-flour. Knead thoroughly, and treat as you would 
wheat bread in the matter of the two risings and baking. 

This is nice and delicate for invalids, and keeps well. 
If you camiot procure the rice-flour, boil one cup of whole 
rice to a thin paste, mashing and beating it smooth. 

French Rolls. {JVo. I.) t^ 

In kneading dough for the day's baking, after adding 
and working in the risen sponge, set aside enough for a loaf 
of tea-rolls. Work into this a heaping tablespoonful of lard 
or butter, and let it stand in a tolerably cool place (not a 
cold or draughty one) for four hoiirs. Knead it again, 
and let it alone for three hours longer. Then make into 
rolls, by rolling out, very lightly, pieces of the dough into 
round cakes, and folding these, not quite in the centre, like 
turn-overs. The third rising will be for one hour, then 
bake steadily half an hour or less, if the oven is quick. 

Having seen these rolls, smoking, light, and delicious 
upon my own table, at least twice a week for ten years, 
with scarcely a failure in the mixing or baking, I can con- 



284 COMMON SENSE. 

fidently recommend the receipt and the product. You can 
make out part of your Graham dough in the same manner. 

French Eolls, (iVb. 2.) 

1 quart milk ; new, warm milk is best. 

1 teacup yeast. 

1 quart and a pint flour. 

When this sponge is light, work in a well-beaten egg 
and two tablespoonfuls melted butter, with a teaspoonful of 
salt, half a teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot v/ater, ono 
tablespoonful white sugar and enough flour to make a soft 
dough. Let this stand four or five hours, roll out into 
round cakes and fold as in No. 1, or shape with your hands 
into balls. Set these closely together in the baking-pan ; 
let them rise one hour, and just before putting them into 
the oven, cut deeply across each ball with a sharp knife. 
This will make the cleft roll, so familiar to us in French 
restaurants. Bake half an hour. 

Risen Biscuit, t^ 

1 quart milk, 

1^ cup lard or butter — half-and-half is a good rule. 
"I cup of yeast, 

2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Flour to make a soft dough. 

Mix over night, warming the milk slightly and melting 
the lard or butter. In the morning, roll out into a sheet 
■three-quarters of an inch in thickness ; ciit into round 
cakes, set these closely together in a pan, let them rise for 
twenty minutes, and bake twenty minutes. 

These delightful biscuits are even better if the above in- 
gredients be set with half as much flour, in the form of a 



BEEAI>. 285 

thin sponge, and the resb of the flciir be worked iii five 
houis later. Let this rise five hours more, and proceed as 
already directed. This is the best plan if the biscivit are 
intended for tea. 

Sally Lunn. (JVo. 1.)*^ 
1 qviart of flour. 
4 eggs. 

^ cup melted butter. 
1 cup warm milk. 
1 cup warm water. 
4 tablespoonfuls yeast. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 
■^ " soda, dissolved in hot water. 

Beat the eggs to a stiflf froth, add the milk, water, butter, 
soda, and salt ; stir in the flour to a smooth batter, and 
beat the yeast in well. Set to rise in a buttered pudding- 
dish, in which it must be baked and sent to table. Or, if 
you wish to turn it out, set to rise in a we/^btittered mould. 
It will not be light under six hours. Bake steadily three- 
quarters of an hour, or until a straw thrust into it comes 
up clean. Eat while hot. 

This is the genuine old-fashioned Sally Lunn, and will 
hardly give place even yet to the newer and faster com- 
pounds known under the same name. 

tit Sally Lunn. {JVo. 2.) •{• 

1 scant quart flour. 
4 eggs. 

1 teacupful milk. 

1 *' lard and butter mixed. 
1 teaspoonful cream-tartar. 
^ " soda dissolved in hot water. 

1 ♦* salt. 



286 COMIVIOIT SENSE. 

Beat the eggs very light, yolks and whites separately ; 
melt the shortening, sift the cream-tartar into the flour, 
add the whites the last tiling. 

Potato Biscuit. 

8 potatoes of medium size, mashed very fine. 
4 tablespoonfuls butter, melted. 
2 cups milk, blood-warm. 

1 cup yeast. 

Flour to make a thin batter. 

2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 

Stir all the above ingredients together except the but- 
ter, and let the sponge rise until light — four or five hours 
will do ; then add the melted butter with a little salt and 
flour, enough to make soft dough. Set aside this for four 
hours longer, roll out in a sheet three-quarters of an inch 
thick, cut into cakes ; let these rise one hour, and bake. 

Mrs. E 's Biscuit (Soda). 4* 

1 quart flour. 

2 heaping tablespoonfuls of lard. 

2 cups sweet — if you can get it — new milk. 

1 teaspoonful of soda. 

2 " cream-tartar. 
1 saltspoonful of salt. 

Rub the soda and cream-tartar into the flour, and sift 
all together before they are wet ; then put in the salt ; next 
the lard, rubbed into the prepared flour quickly and light- 
\y ; lastly, pour in the milk. Work out the dough rapidly, 
kneading with as few strokes as possible, since handling 
injures the biscuit. If properly prejjared the dough will 
have a rough surface and the biscuit be flaky. The dough 
should also be very soft. If the flour stiffen it too much, 



BKEAD. 287 

add more milk. Roll out lightly, cut into cakes at least 
half an inch thick, and bake in a quick oven. The biscuit 
made by the friend from whom I had this receipt were 
marvels of lightness and sweetness. I have often thought 
of them since with regretful longing, when set down to so- 
called " soda-biscuit," marbled with greenish-yellow streaks, 
and emitting, when split, an odor which was in itself an 
eloquent dissuasive to an educated appetite. Few cooks 
make really good, quick biscuit — why, I am unable to say, 
unless upon the principle of " brains will tell." I have 
had more than one in my kitchen, who, admirable in almost 
every other respect, were absolutely unfit to be intrusted 
with this simple yet delicate manufacture. The common 
fault is to have too " heavy a hand " with soda, and to 
" guess at " the quantities, instead of measuring them. Eat 
while warm. 

Graha3i Biscuit. »J< 

3 cups Graham flour. 

1 cup white. 
3 cups milk. 

2 tablespoonfuls lard. 

1 heaping tablespoonful white sugar. 
1 saltspoonful of salt. 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar. 

Mix and bake as yoxi do the white soda-bisciit (Mrs. 
E 's). They are good cold as well as hot. 

Minute Biscuit. 

1 pint sour, or buttermilk. 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

2 teaspoonfuls melted butter. 



288 COMMON SENSE. 

Flour to make soft dough — ^just stiff enough to handle. 
Mix, roll, and cut out rajiidly, with as Kttle handling as 
may be, and bake in a quick oven. 

Gkaham Wheatlets. 

1 pint Graham flour. 

Nearly a quart of boiling water or milk. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

ycald the flour, when you have salted it, into as soft 
dough as you can handle. Roll it nearly an inch thick, 
cut in round cakes, lay upon a hot buttered tin or pan, 
and bake them in the hottest oven you can get ready. 
Everything depends upon heat in the maniifacture of these. 
Some cooks spread them on a hot tin, and set this upon a 
red-hot stove. Properly scalded and cooked, they are light 
as pufts, and very good ; otherwise they are flat and tough. 
Split and butter while hot. 

Sweet Rusk. *J« 

1 pint warm milk. 
^ cup of butter. 

1 cvip of sugar. 

2 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful of salt. 

2 tablespoonfuls yeast. 

Make a sponge with the milk, yeast, and enoxigh flour 
for a thin batter, and let it rise over night. In the morn- 
ing add the butter, eggs, and sugar, previously beaten up 
•well together, the salt, and flour enough to make a soft 
dough. Mould with the hands into balls of uniform size ; 
set close together in a pan, and let them rise until very 
light. After baking, wash the tops with a clean soft cloth 
dipped in molasses and water. 



BKEAD. 289 

Dried Rusk. »J« 

1 pint of warm milk. 

2 ews. 

•^ teacup of butter. 
Half a cup of yeast. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Set a sponge with these ingredients, leaving out the 
eggs, and stirring in flour until you have a thick batter. 
Eiirly next morning add the well-beaten eggs, and flour 
etough to enable you to roll out the dough. Let this rise 
in the bread-bowl two hours. Roll into a sheet nearly au 
inch thick, cut into round cakes, and arrange in your bak- 
ing-])an two deep, laying one upon the other carefully. 
Let these stand for another half-liour, and bake. 

These are now very nice for eating, and you may, if 
you like, reserve a plateful for tea ; but the rule for the 
manj^, handed down through, I am afraid to say how many 
genei'ations, in the family where I first ate this novel and 
delightful biscuit, is to divide the t^vins, thus leaving one 
side of each cake soft, and, piling them loosely in the pan, 
set them in the oven when the tire is declining for the 
night, and leave them in until morning.* Then, still obey- 
ing the traditions of revered elders, put them in a clean 
muslin bag, and hang them up in the kitchen. They will 
be fit to eat upon the third day. Put as many as you need 
in a deep dish and pour over them iced milk, or water, if 
you cannot easily procure the former. Let them soak un- 
til soft, take them out, drain them for a minute in a shal- 
low plate, and eat with butter. Invalids and cliildreu 
crave them eagerly. Indeed, I have seen few refuse them 
who had ever tasted them before. There is a pastoral flavor 
about the pleasant dish, eaten with the accompaniment of 
fresh beriies, on a summer evening, that a])peals to the bet- 
ter impulses of one's appetite. 
13 



290 COIOION SENSE. 

Try my soaked nisk — not forgetting to ice the milk — • 
and you will find out for yourself what I mean, but cannot 
quite express. 

Dried rusk will keep for weeks, and grow better every 
day. The only xisk is in their being eaten up before they 
attain maturity. 

Butter Crackers. 

1 quart of flour. 

3 tablespoonfuls butter. 

^ teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 

1 saltspoonful salt. 

2 cups sweet milk. 

Rub the butter into the flour, or, what is better, cut it 
up with a knife or chopper, as jou do in pastry ; add the 
salt, milk, and soda, mixing well. "Work into a ball, lay 
upon 'a floured board, and beat with the rolling-pin half au 
hour, turning and shifting the mass often. Roll into an 
even sheet, a quai'ter of an inch thick, or less, prick deeply 
with a fork, and bake hard in a moderate oven. Hang 
them up in a musjin bag in the kitchen for two days to 
dry. 

Wafers. i«J« 

1 pound of flour. 

2 tablespoonfuls butter. 
A little salt. 

Mix with sweet milk into a stifl" dough, roll otit very 
thin, cut into round cakes, and again roll these as thin as 
they can be handled. Lift them carefully, lay in a pan, 
and bake very quickly. 

These are extremely nice, especially for invalids. They 
should be hardly thicker than writing-paper. Flour tha 
baking-pan instead of greasing. 



BREAD. 291 

Crumpets {Sweet). 
1 pint raised dough. 
3 eggs. 

3 tablespoonfuls butter. 
^ cup white sugar. 

When your bread has passed its second rising, ■work in« 
to the above-named quantity the melted butter, then the 
eggs and sugar, beaten together until very light. Bake in 
mufiin-rings about twenty minutes. 

Crumpets {Plain). »{• 

3 cups wartQ milk. 

I" cup yeast. 

2 tablespoonfuls melted butter. 

1 saltspoonful salt, and the same of soda, dissolved in 

hot water. 
Flour to make good batter. 

Set these ingredients — leaving out the butter and soda 
— as a sponge. When very light, beat in the melted but- 
ter, with a very little flour, to prevent the butter from 
thinning the batter too much ; stir in the soda hard, fill 
pattyjjans or mufl[in-rings with the mixture, and let them 
stand fifteen minutes before baking. 

This is an excellent, easy, and economical receipt. 

Graham Muffins. »{* 

3 cups Graham flour. 

1 " white flour. 

1 quart of milk. 

I cup yeast. 

1 tablespoon ful lard or butter. 

1 teaspoonfiil salt. 

2 tablespoonfuls sugar. 



292 COMMON SENSE. 

Set to rise over night, and bake in muffin-rings twenty 
minutes in a quick oven. Eat hot. 

Queen Muffins. *J< 

1 quart of milk. 
|- cup of yeast. 

2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 

1 " of lard or butter. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

Flour to make a good batter. 

2 eggs. 

Set the batter — leaving out the eggS — to rise ovei 

night. In the morning beat the eggs very light, stir intc 

the batter, and bake in muffin-rings twenty minutes in a 

qviick oven. 

Cream Muffins, *J« 

1 quart sweet milk (half-cream, if you can get it). 
1 " flour — heaping. 
6 eggs. 

1 tablespoonful butter, and the same of lard — melted 
together. 
Beat the eggs light — th>( yolks and whites separately ; 
add the milk, with a little salt, then the shortening, lastly 
the flour, stirring in lightly. Bake immediately in well- 
greased rings half filled with the batter. Your oven should 
be hot, and the muffins sent to table so soon as they are 
taken up. 

Buttermilk Muffins. 

1 quai't buttermilk, or " loppered " sweet milk. 

2 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 

1 " salt. 

Flour to make good batter. 



BREAD. 203 

Beat the eggs well and stir them into the milk, beatiag \ 
hard all the while ; add the flour and salt, and at the last 
the soda. Bake at once in a quick oven. 

"Mother's" Muffins. kJ* 

1 pint milk. 

1 egg. 

1 tablespoonful lard. 

■^ cup yeast. 

Flour for stiff batter. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

Set to rise over night. 

Charlotte Muffins. «^ 

1 quart of flour. 

3 eggs — the whites and yolks beaten "separately and 

until stifl". 
3 cups of milk. If sour, no disadvantage, if soda bo 

added. 
A little salt. 
The excellence of these depends upon thorough beat- 
ing and quick baking. 

Bice Muffins. »{• - 

1 cup cold boiled rice. 

1 pint of flour. 

2 eggs. 

1 quart of milk, or enough to make thin batter. 
1 tablespoonful lard or butter. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Beat hard and bake quickly. 



/ 



294 COMMON BENSE. 

/ 

Hominy Muffins. »J« 

2 cups fine hominy — bciled and cold. 

3 eggs. 

3 cups soiir milk. If sweet, add one teaspoonful cream- 
tartar. 
•^ cup melted butter. 
2 teaspoonfuls salt. 
2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 
1 large cup flour. 
1 teaspoonful soda. 

Beat the hominy smooth; stir in the milk, then the 
biitter, salt, and sugar ; next the eggs, which should first 
be well beaten ; then the soda, dissolved in hot water ; 
lastly the flour. 

There are no more delicious or wholesome muffins than 
these, if rightly mixed and quickly baked. 

Belle's Muffins. 

3 pints of flour. 

1 quart of milk. 

2 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls cream-tartar. 
1 teaspoonful soda. 
1 " salt. 

Sift the cream-tartar with the flour. Beat the eggs 
very light. Dissolve the soda in hot water. Bake in rings 
in a quick oven. 

Corn Bread. 

There is a marked diflterence between the corn-meal 
ground at the South, and that which is sent out from 
Northern mills. If any one doubts this, it is not she who 
has perseveringly tried both kinds, and demonstrated to 



BKEAD. 29?. 

her own conviction tliat the same treatment will not do 
for tliem. An intelligent lady once told me that the shape 
of the particles composing the meal was ditferent — the one 
being round and smooth, the other angular. I am inclined 
to believe this. The Southern meal is certainly coarser, 
and the bread made from it less compact. Moreover, there 
is a partiality at the North for yellow meal, which the 
Southerners i-egard as only fit for chicken and cattle-feed. 
The yellow may be the sweeter, but I acknowledge that I 
have never succeeded in making really nice bread from it. 

Indian meal should be purchased in small quantities, 
except for a very large family. It is apt to heat, mould, 
and grow musty, if kept long in bulk or in a warm place. 
If not sweet and dry, it is useless to expect good bread or 
cakes. As an article of diet, especially in the early warm 
days of spring, it is healthful and agreeable, often acting 
as a gentle corrective to bile and other disorders. In 
winter, also, it is always acceptable upon the breakfast 
or supper table, being warming and nutritious. In sum- 
mer the free use of it is less judicious, on account of its 
laxative properties. As a kindly variation in the routine 
of fine white bread and baker's rolls, it is worth the atten- 
tion of every housewife. " John and the children " will 
like it, if it approximates the fair standard of excellence ; 
and I take it, my good friend — you who have patiently 
kept company -with me from our prefatory talk until now — 
that you love them well enough to care for their comfort 
and Likings. 

" My husband is wild about corn bread," a wife re- 
marked to me not a hundred years ago, " but I won't make 
it for him ; it is such a bother ! And if I once indulge 
him, he will give me no peace." 

Beloved sister, I am persuaded better things of you. 
Good husbands cannot be spoiled by petting. Bad onea 



21)6 COMMON SENSE. 

cannot be made worse — they may be made better. It seems 
a little thing, so trilling in its consequences, you need not 
tire further your aching back and feet to accomplish it — 
the preparation of John's favorite dish when he does not 
expect the treat — to surprise him when he comes in cold 
and hungry, by setting before him a dish of hot milk-toast, 
or a loaf of corn-bread, brown and crisp withotit, yellow 
and spongy within, instead of the stereotyped pile of cold 
slices, bro-\vn or white. If he were consulted, he would 
say, like the generous soul he is — " Don't take one needless 
step for me, dear." And he would mean it. Bvit for all 
that, he will enjoy your little surprise — ay! and love you 
the better for it. It is the " little by little " that makes 
up the Aveal and woe of life. 

May I make this digression longer yet, by telling you 
what I overheard a husband say to a wife the other day, 
when he thought no one else was near enough to hear him ? 
He is no gourmand, but he is very partial to a certain kind 
of cruller which nobody else can make, he thinks, so well 
as his little wife. It so chanced that in frying some of these 
she scalded her hand badly. After it was bandaged, she 
brought up a plate of the cakes for his luncheon. He look 
ed at them, then at her, with a loving, mournful smile. 

" I can understand now," said he, " how David felt 
when his men-of-war brought him the water from the well 
of Bethlehem." 

Then he stooped and kissed the injured fingers. Yet 
he has been married nearly twenty years. I war not 
a,shamed that my eyes were moist. I honored him -^.he more 
that his were dim. 

This is my lesson by the wayside apropos to corn bread. 

And now again to business. 



BREAD. 297 

Receipts for Bread made of Norlhern Iniian Meal. 

NoNPAKEiL Corn Bread. *J« 

2 heapiag cups of Indian meal. 
1 cup of flour. 

3 eggs. 

2^ cups milk. 

1 tablespoonful lard. 

2 *' white sugar. 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

2 *' cream-tartar. 
1 " salt. 

Beat the eggs very thoroughly — ^whites and yolks sep- 
arately — melt the lard, sift the cream-tartar and soda into 
the meal and flour while yet diy, and stir this in at the 
last. Then, to borrow the direction scribbled by a rattle- 
tongued girl upon the above receipt, when she sent it to 
me — " heat like mad ! " Bake quickly and steadily in a 
buttered mould. Less than half an hour will usually sufiice. 
In cutting corn bread hold the knife perpendicularly and 
cut toward you. 

Corn Meal Muffins. 

Mix according to the foregoing receipt, only a little thin- 
ner, and bake in rings or small pattypans. All kinds of 
corn bread should be baked quickly and eaten while hot. 

Risen Corn Bread. 

1 pint Indian meal. 

2 cups risen sponge, taken from your regular baking ol 

wheat bread. 
i cup molasses, or, what is better, 4 tablespoonfula 
white sugar. 
13* 



298 CQMMON SENSE. 

1 teaspoonful soda, dissolved in liot water. 

1 tablespoonful lard, melted. 

1 cup flour, or enough for stiff batcer. ' 

Mix well, put to rise in a buttered mould until very 
light. Bake one hour. It is well to scald the meal and 
stir in while blood- warm. 

Steamed Corn Bread. 

2 cups Indian meal. 

1 cup flour. 

2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 

2^ cups " loppered " milk, or buttermilk. 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

1 " salt. 

1 heaping tablespoonful lard, melted. 

Beat very hard and long, put in buttered mould, tie a 
coarse cloth tightly over it, and if you have no steamer, fit 
the mould in the top of a pot of boiUng water, taking care 
it does not touch the surface of the liquid. Lay a close 
cover over the cloth tied about the mould, to keep in all the 
heat. Steam one hour and a half, and set in an oven ten 
minutes. Turn out upon a hot plate, and eat while warm. 

This will do for a plain dessert, eaten with pudding-sauce. 

Corn-Meal Crumpets. 

1 quart Indian meal. 

1 " boiled milk. 

4 tablespoonfuls yeast. 

2 " white sugar. 
2 heaping tablespoonfuls lard 

or butter, or half-and-half. 
1 saltspoonful salt. 

Scald the meal with the boiUng milk, and let it stand 



BREAD. • 299 

until lukewarm. Then stir in tlie sugar, yeast, and salt, 
and leave it to rise five lioui's. Add the melted shortening, 
beat well, put in gi-eased muffin-rings, set these near tho 
fire for fifteen minutes, and bake. Half an hour in a quick 
oven ought to cook them. 

Never cut open a muffin or crumpet of any kind, least 
of all one made of Indian meal. Pass the knife lightly 
around it to pierce the crust, then break open with the 
fingers. 

Receipts for Corn J^read made of Southern Indian Meal. 
Johnny Cake. 

1 teacupful sweet milk. 

1 " buttermilk. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

1 *' soda. 

1 tablespoonful melted butter. 

Enough meal to enable you to roll it into a sheet lialf 
an inch thick. Spi'ead upon a buttered tin, or in a shallow 
pan, and bake forty minutes. As soon as it begins to brown, 
baste it with a rag tied to a stick and dipped in melted but- 
ter. Repeat this five or six times until it is brown and crisp. 
Break — not cut it up — and eat for luncheon or tea, accom- 
panied by sweet or buttermilk. 

Aunt Jenny's Johnny Cake. 

Mix as above ; knead well, and bake upon a perfectly 
clean and sweet board, before a hot fire, with something at 
the back to keep it up. Incline at such an angle as will 
prevent the cake fi-om slipping off", until it is hardened 
slightly by baking, then place upright. Baste frequently 
with butter vmtil nicely crisped. 



300 COMMON SENSE. 

Batter Bread or "Egg Bread." »J« 

Half a cup of bread-crumbs soaked in a pint of milk, 

2 eggs. 

2 cups Indian meal. 

1 tablespoonful lard or butter. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

Beat tbe eggs ligbt, and the soaked bread-crumbs to a 
smooth batter. Melt the shortening. Stir all together 
very hard, and bake in shallow tins very quickly. 

EiSEN Corn Bread. 

Mix a tolerably stiff dough of corn-meal and boiling 
water, a little salt, and a tablespoonful butter. Let it stand 
four or five hours until light ; make into small loaves and 
bake rather quickly. 

Corn-meal Pone. 

1 quart Indian meal. 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

A little lard, melted. 

Cold water to make a soft dough. 

Mould with the hands into thin oblong * cakes, lay in a 
•well-greased pan, and bake very quickly. 

The common way is to movild into oval mounds, higher 
in the middle than at the ends, shaping these rapidly and 
lightly with the hands, by tossing the dough over and over. 
This is done with great dexterity by the Yirginia cooks, 
and this corn-meal pone forms a part of every dinner. It 
is broken, not cut, and eaten very hot. 



geiddle-cakes, waffles, etc. 301 

Ash Cake 
Is mixed as above. A clean spot is swept upon the hot 
hearth, the bread put down and covered with hot wood- 
ashes. It must be washed and wiped dry before it is eaten. 
A neater way is to lay a cabbage-leaf above and below the 
pone. The bread is thus steamed before it is baked, and is 
made ready for eating by stripping off the leaves. 

FWED POXE. 

Instead of moulding the dough with the hands, cut into 
slices with a knife. Try out some fat pork in a frying-pan, 
and fry the slices in the gravy thus obtained to a light 
brown. 

Griddle-Cakes, Waffles, etc. 

If you have not used your griddle or waffle-iron for 
some time, wash it off hard with hot soap and water ; wipe 
and rub well with dry salt. Heat it and grease with a bit 
of fat salt pork on a fork. It is a mistake, besides being 
slovenly and wasteful, to put on more grease than is abso- 
lutely necessary to prevent the cake from sticking. A piece 
of pork an inch square should last for several days. Put 
on a great spoonfid of butter for each cake, and before fill- 
ing the griddle test it with a single cake, to be sure that all 
is right with it as well as the batter. 

The same rules apply to waffles. Always lay hot cake a 
and waffles upon a hot plate as soon as baked. 

Buckwheat Caices. »^ 

1 quart buckwheat Hour. 
4 tablespoonfuls yeast. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

1 handful Indian meal. 

2 tablespoonfuls molasses -not syrup. 



302 COMMON SENSE. 

Warm water enough to make a thin batter. Beat very 
well and set to rise in a warm place. If the batter is in the 
least sour in the morning, stir in a very little soda dissolv- 
ed in hot water. 

Mix in an earthen crock, and leave some in the bottom 
each morning — a cupful or so — to serve as sponge for the 
next night, instead of getting fresh yeast. In cold weather 
this plan can be successfully pursued for a week or ten daya 
without setting a new supply. 0£ course you add the usual 
quantity of flour, &c., every night, and beat up well. 

Do not make your cakes too small. Buckwheats should 
be of generous size. Some put two-thirds buckwheat, one- 
third oat-meal, omitting the Indian. 

Flannel Cakes. »J« 

1 quart milk. 

3 tablespoonfuls yeast. 

1 tablespoonful butter, melted 

2 eggs, well beaten. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Flour to make a good batter. Set the rest of the ingre- 
dients as a sponge over night, and in the morning add the 
melted butter and eggs. 

Corn-meal Flapjacks. 

1 quart sour or buttermilk. 

2 eggs, beaten light. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

1 " soda dissolved in hot water. 

2 tablespoonfuls molasses. 

1 " lard, melted. 

^ cup flour. 

Meal to make a batter a trifle thicker than flannel cakes. 



geiddle-cakes, waffles, etc. 303 

Graham Cakes. ^ 

2 cups brown flour. 
1 cup white " 

3 cups sour or buttermilk. 

1 full teaspoonful soda, dissolved in liot water. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 
1 heaping tablespoonful lard. 
■ 3 eggs, beaten very light. 

If you use sweet milk, add two teaspoonfuls cream-tai 
tar. Bake as soon as they are mixed. 

Auntie's Cakes {without Eggs). 

1 quart sour or buttermilk. 

2 teaspoonfuls soda (small ones). 
1 " salt. 

Flour to make a tolerably thick batter. 

Stir until smooth — no longer — and bake immediately. 

Egoless Flannel Cakes. 

1 quart milk. 

■^ teacupful yeast. 

2 cups white flour. 
1 Clip Indian meal. 

1 tablespoonful lard, melted. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Set over night, adding the lard in the morning. 

Grandpa's Favorites. »J« 

1 quart milk, 

2 cups stale bread-crumbs. 
1 good handful of flour. 

1 tablespoonfiil melted butter. 



304 COMMON SENSE. 

3 eggs, well beaten. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

"Work the bread and milk smooth, stir in the butter and 
eggs, then the salt, lastly just enough flour to bind the 
mixture. If too thick, add milk. These are wholesome 
and good. Take care they do not stick to the griddle. 

E.ISEN Batter-Cakes. 

3 cups white Indian meal. 
1 cup white flour. 

1 tablespoonful butter, melted and added in the morn- 
ing. 
1 quart milk. 
' 4 tablespoonfuls of yeast. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water, and added in 

the morning. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Mix over night. 

EicE Cakes, t^ 

One cup cold boiled rice. 
One pint flour. 

1 teasjjoonful salt. 
Two eggs beaten light. 

Milk to make a tolerably thick batter. 

Beat all together well. 

Hominy Cakes. «^ 

2 cups fine hominy, boiled and cold. 
1 cup white flour. 

1 quart milk. 

3 eggs, very well beaten. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 



OEIDDLH-CAKES, WAFFLES, ETC. 305 

Beat smooth the hominy, work in tlie milk and salt, 
then the flovir, lastly the eggs. Bake at once, and keep the 
mixture well stirred. 

Ckeam Cakes. *^ 

1 pint cream and same quantity of milk, slightly sour 

4 eggs, whites and yolks whipped separately. 

1 teasjjoonful soda dissolved in boiling water. 

1 « salt. 

Flour to make a good batter, well beaten in. 

Vela'et Cakes. 

1 quai't new unskimmed milk — half cream and half 

milk is preferable. 
3 eggs, whites and yolks beaten separately and very 

stiff. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 
Rice floiir. 

Mix the beaten yolks with the milk, add the salt, then 
rice flour to make a batter thick as that for flannel cakes ; 
lastly, whip in the stiffened whites very lightly, and bako 
immediately. 

Risen Waffles. 

1 quart milk. 

1 heaping quart flour. 
5 tablespoonfvils yeast. 

2 eggs. 

1 tablespoonful melted butter. 
1 teispoonful salt. 

Set tho mixture — minus the eggs and butter — ovel 
night as a sjDonge ; add these in the morning, and bake in 
•waffle-irons. . 



806 common sense. 

" Mother's " Waffles, i^ 
2 cups milk. 

2 eggs. 

3 cups flour. 

1 teaspoonful cream-tartar. 

■^ " soda. 

1 saltspoonful salt. 

1 tablespoonful melted butter. 
SJft the cream-tartar into the flour with the salt. Dis* 
Boi>e the soda va a little hot water. Beat the eggs very 
well. AtJd cAir flour the last thing. If the batter is too 
stiff, 2>tit tn .Aore mUk. 

&ICE "Waffles {JVo. 1). i^ 

1 cup boiled rice. 

1 pint milk. 

2 eggs. 

Lard, the size of a walnut. 
^ teaspoonful soda. 
1 " cream-tartar. 

1 " salt. 

Flour for a thin batter. 

Rice "Waffles (iVb. 2). 
1 quart milk. 
1 cup cold boiled rice. 

3 cups rice flour, or enough for thin, batter. 
1 tablespoonful melted butter. 
3 eggs. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Quick "Waffles. 
1 pint milk. 

3 eggs, beaten very light. 



BHOETCAKE, ETC. o07 

1 tablespoonful melted butter. 

1 teaspoonful cream-tartar sifted in tlie flour. 

^ " soda. 

1 " salt. 

A heaping pint of flour, or enough to make soft batter. 

Rice and Coen-Meal Waffles. 

1 cup cold boiled rice. 

•^ cup white flour, and same of corn-meal. 

2 eggs well whipped, and milk to make soft batter. 
1 tablespoonful melted butter. 

-^ teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 

1 « of salt. 

Beat the mixture smooth before baking. 
Be especially careful in greasing your irons for these 
caffles, as for all which contain rice. 

Shortcake, &c. 

Sunnyhank Shortcake {/or fruiC), ^ 

2 qiaarts flour. 

2 tablespoonfuls lard. 

3 " butter. 

2\ cups sour or buttermilk. " Loppered " cream is 

still better. 
2 eggs, well beaten. 

1 teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 
1 " salt. 

Chop up the shortening in the salted flour, as for pastry. 
Add the eggs and soda to the milk ; put all together, hand- 
Ung as little as may be. Boll lightly and quickly into two 
sheets, the one intended for the upper crust fully half an 



308 COMMON SENSE. 

inch thick, the lower less than this. Lay the latter smooth- 
ly in a well-greased baking-j^an, strew it thickly with rasp- 
beri'ies, blackberries, or, what is better yet, huckleberries ; 
sprinkle four or five tablespoonfuls of sugar over these, 
cover with the thicker crust, and Wake from twenty to 
twenty-five minutes, until nicely browned, but not dried. 
Eat hot for breakfast with butter and powdered sugar. 

If sweet milk be used, add two tea-spoonfuls cream- 
tartar sifted into the dry flour. It should be mixed as soft 
as can be rolled. This shortcake is very nice made with 
the common " black-caps " or wild raspberries. 

Strawberky Shortcake. *J« 

1 qiTart flour. 

3 tablespoonfuls butter. 

1 large cup sour cream or very rich " loppered " milk. 

1 egg. 

1 tablespoonful white sugar. 

1 teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 

1 saltspoonful salt. 

Proceed, in mixing and baking, as with the huckleberry 
short-cake, except that, instead of putting the berries be- 
tween the crust, you lay one sheet of paste smoothly upon 
the other, and bake until done. "While warm — not hot — 
separate these. They will come apai't easily, just where 
they were joined. Lay upon the lower a thick coating, 
several deep, of strawberries; spi'inkle powdered sugar 
among and over them'; cover with the upper crust. It 
is best to bake straM'berry shortcake in round jelly-cake 
tins, or round pans a little deeper than these, as they 
should be sent to table whole, while the hot short-cake is 
generally cut into sqtiare slices, and piled upon a plate. 

Strawberry shortcake is esteemed a great delicacy in 



SHORTCAKE, ETC. o09 

its season. It is eaten at tea, cut into triangles like pie, 
and sweet cream poured over each slice, with more sugar 
afted over it, if desii'ed. 

Scotch Short-bread. 

2 lbs. flour. 

1 lb. best butter. • 

■|- lb. powdered sugar. 

Chop the flour and butter together, having made the 
i* Icr qiiite soft by setting it near the fire. Knead in the 
Bu^^cr, roll into a sheet half an inch thick, and cut in 
shapes with a cake-cutter. Bake upon buttered paper in a 
shallow tin until crisp and of a delicate yellowish brown. 

Grandma's Shortcake. 

1 lb. flour, dried and sifted. 
J lb. butter, and half as much lard. 
1 saltspoonful salt. 

A pinch of soda, thoroughly dissolved in just enough 
vinegar to cover it, and well worked in. 

Enough ice- water to enable jou to roll out into paste 
half an inch thick. Cut into squai-es, prick with a fork, and 
bake light brown. Split, butter, and eat while hot. 

Easter Buns {'^ Sot Cross""). *^ 

3 cups sweet milk. 

1 cup yeast. 

Flour to make th^k batter. 

Se< this as a sponge over night. In the morning add— 
1 cup sugar. 
I" cup butter, melted. 
^ nutmeg. 
1 saltspoonful salt. 



310 COMMON SENSE. 

Flour enoTigli to roll out like biscuit. Knead well, and 
set to rise for five hours. Roll half an inch thick, cut into 
round cakes, and lay in rows in a buttered baking-pan. 
When they have stood half an hour, make a cross upon 
each with a knife, and put instantly into the oven. Bake 
to a light brown, and brush over with a feather or soft 
bit of rag, dipped in the white of an egg beaten up stifi 
with white sugar. 

These are the " hot cross-buns" of the " London cries." 

Plain Buns 

Are made as above, but not rolled into a sheet. Knead 
them like biscuit-dough, taking care not to get it too stiff, 
and after the five-hour rising, work in two or three hand- 
fuls of currants which have been previously well washed 
and dredged with flour. Mould with your hands into 
round balls, set these closely together in a pan, that they 
may form a loaf — " one, yet many " — when baked. Let 
them stand nearly an hour, or until very light ; then bake 
from half to three-quarters of an hour until brown. Wash 
them over while hot with the beaten egg and sugar. 

These are generally eaten cold, or barely warm, and are 
best the day they are baked. 

Cake. 

Use none but the best materials for making cake. If 
you cannot afford to get good flour, dry white sugar, and. 
the best family butter, rnake up your mind to go without 
your cake, and eat plain%read with a clear conscience. 

There are no intermediate degrees of quality in eggs. 
I believe I have said that somewhere else, but it ought to 
be repeated just here. They should be, like Caesar's wife, 
above suspicion. A tin whisk or whip is best for beat- 
ing them. All kinds of cake are better for having the 



CAKE. 311 

"whites and yolks beaten separately. Beat the former in a 
large shallow dish until you can cut through the froth with 
a knife, leaving as clear and distinct an incision as you 
would in a solid substance. Beat the yolks in an earthen- 
ware bowl until they cease to froth, and thicken as if mixed 
with flour. Have the dishes cool — not too cold. It is 
hard to whip whites stiff in a warm room. 

Stir the butter and sugar to a cream. Cakes often fail 
because this rule is not followed. Beat these as faithfvilly 
as you do the eggs, warming the butter very slightly if 
hard. Use only a silver or wooden spoon in this as in 
other parts of your work. I have heai'd of silver egg- 
whips, but they are not likely to come into general use, ex- 
cept where the mistress makes all the cake, pudding, etc. 

Do not use fresh and stale milk in the same cake. It acts 
as disastrously as a piece of new cloth in an old garment. 
Sour milk makes a spongy cake ; sweet, one closer in grain. 

Study the moods and tenses of your oven carefully be- 
fore essaying a loaf of cake. Confine your early efforts to 
tea-cakes and the like. Jelly-cake, baked in shallow flat 
tins, is good practice during the novitiate. Keep the heat 
steady, and as good at bottom as hot. 

Streaks in cake are caused by unskilful mixing, too 
rapid or unequal baking, or a sudden decrease in heat be- 
fore the cake is quite done. 

Don't delude yovu'self, and maltreat those who are to 
eat your cake, by trying to make soda do the whole or most 
of the duty of eggs. Others have tried it before, with un- 
fortunate results. If curiosity ten^t you to the experi- 
ment, you had better allay it by buying some sponge-cake 
at the corner bakery. 

Test whether a cake is done by running a clean straw 
into the thickest part. It should come up clean. 

Do not leave the oven-door open, or change the cake 



312 COMMON SENSE. 

from one oven to the other, except in extreme ca,5e3. If it 
harden too fast on the top, cover with paper. It should 
rise to full height before the cnist forms. 

Except for gingerbread, use none but white sugar. 

Always sift the flour. 

Be accurate in your weights and measures. 

There is no short road to good fortune in cahe-viahing. 
What is ivorth doing at all is xuorth doing well. There is 
no disgrace in not having time to mix and bake a cake, 
/ou may well be ashamed of yourself if you are too lazy, 
or careless, or hurried to beat your eggs, cream your butter 
and sugar, or measure your ingredients. 

Yet, sometimes, when you believe you have left no 
means untried to deserve success, failure is your portion. 
What then ? 

If the cake be uneatable, throw it away upon the first 
beggar-boy who comes for broken meat, and say nothing 
about it. If streaky or burned, cut out the best parts, 
make them presentable as possible, and give them to John 
and the children as a " second-best " treat. Tlien keep up 
a brave heart and try again. You may not satisfy your- 
self in a dozen trials. You certainly will not, if you never 
make another attempt. 

Cake should be wrapped in a thick cloth as soon as 
cool, and kept in tight tin boxes. Do not ciit more at x 
time than you are likely to xise, as it is not good when dry. 
Jelly-cakes are best set away upon plates, cloths wrapped 
closely about them, and a box enclosing all. 

Cream your sugar and butter, measure milk, spices, etc., 
before beginning Avork. For fruit-cake it is best to pre- 
pare the materials the day before. Let your icing dry 
thoroughly before wrapping up the cake. 

Sift your four before measuring, as all the following 
receipts are for sifted flour. 



CAKE. 313 

ICIXG. kj* 

Wliites of 4 eggs. 

1 jiovind powdered white sugar. 

Lemon, vauilla, or other seasouing. 

Break the whites into a broad, clean, cool disli. Throw 
a small handful of sugar upon them, and begin whijipiug it 
m with long, even strokes of the beater. A few minutes 
later, throw in more sugar, and keep adding it at intervals 
until it is all used up. Beat perseveringly — always with a 
regular, sweeping movement of the whisk — until the icing 
is of a. smooth, fine, and firm texture. Half an hour's 
beating should be sufficient, if done well. If not stiff en- 
ough, put in more sugar. A little practice will teach you 
when your end is gained. If you season with lemon-juice, 
allow, in measuring, your sugar, for the additional liquid. 
Lemon-juice or a very little tartaric acid whitens the icing. 
Use at least a quarter of a pound of sugar for each egg. 

This method of making icing was taught me by a con- 
fectioner, as easier and surer than the old 2:»lan of beating 
the eggs first and alone. I have used no other since my 
first trial of it. The frosting hardens in one-fourth the 
time required under the former plan, and not more than 
half the time is consumed in the manufacture. I have 
often iced a cake but two hours before it was cut, and found 
the sugar dry all through. 

Pour the icing by the s|)00uful on the top of the cake 
and near the centre of the surface to be covered. If tho 
loaf is of such a shape that the liqMd will settle of itself to 
its place, it is best to let it do so. If you spread it, use a 
broad-bladed knife, dipped in cold water. If it is as thick 
with sugar as it should be, you need not lay on more than 
one coat. You may set it in a moderate oven foi three 
minutes, if you are in great haste. The better plan is to 
H 



314 COaiMON SENSE. 

dry in a sunny window, wliere tlie air can get at it, and 
wliere there is no diist. 

Color icing yellow by putting the grated peel of a lemon 
or orange in a thin muslin bag, straining a little juice 
through it, and squeezing it hard into the egg and siigar. 

Strawberry -juice colors a pretty pink, as does also cran- 
berry-syrup. 

Almond Icing. 

Whites of four eggs. 
1 pound sweet almonds. 
1 " powdered sugar. 
A little rose-water. 

Blanch the almouds by pouring boiling water over them 
and stripping otf the skins. "When dry, pound them to a 
paste, a few at a time, in a Wedgewood mortar, moistening 
it with rose-water as you go on. When beaten fine and 
smooth, beat gradually into iciug, prepared according to 
foregoing receipt. 

Put on very thick, and, when nearly dry, cover with 
plain icing. 

This is very fine. 

Or, 

Mingle a few bitter almonds with the sweet. The blended 
flavor of these and the rose water is very pleasant. 

Martha's Cake {For Jelly). ^ 
3 eggs. 
1 cup sugar. 

Butter, the size of «,n egg. 
• 1 cup flour. 

1 teaspoonful cream-tartar, sifted in the flour. 
\ teaspoonful soda, dissolved in a tablespoonfvil milk. 

Bake in jelly-cake tins, and spread, when cold, with 
fruit jelly. 



CAKE. 315 

This is, although, so simple and inexpensive, an admira- 
ble fonndation for the various kinds of jelly, cream, and 
meringue cake, which are always popular. It seldom fails, 
and when well mixed and baked, is very nice. 

Mrs. M.'s Cup Cake. 4« 

1 cup butter. 

2 " sugar. 

3 cups flour 

4 eggs. 

1 cup sweet milk. 
1 teaspoonful soda. 
Bake in a loaf, or as jelly-cake. 

Ckeam-Cake. t^ 

2 cups powdered sugar. 
|- cvipful butter. 

4 eggs. 

■^ cupful milk. 

■^ teaspoonful soda. 

1 " cream-tartar. • 

3 cups floixr. 

Bake in thin layers as for jelly-cake, and spread be- 
tween them when cold the following mixture : — 
■^ pint of milk. 

2 small teaspoonfuls corn-starch. 
1 egg. 

1 teaspoonful vanilla. 
•J- cup sugar. 

Heat the milk to boiling, and stir in the coi'n-starch 
wet with a little cold milk ; take out a little and mix gi-ad- 
ually with the beaten egg and sugar ; retxirn to the i-est of 
the custard, and boil, stirring constantly until quite thick 



316 COMMON SENSE. 

Let it cool before you season, and spread on cake. Season 
the icing also with vanilla. 

Jelly-Cake. 
1 lb. sugar. 
1 " flour. 
^ " butter. 
G eggs. 
1 cup milk. 
■^ teaspoonful soda. 

1 " cream-tartar. 

Bake in shallow tins, and, when cool, put jelly between 

Cocoanut-Case. t^ 

2 cups powdered sugar. 
■^ cup butter. 

3 eggs. 

1 cup milk. 
3 cups flour. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar. 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

Bake as for jelly-cake. 

1 grated cocoanixt. 

To one-half of this add Avhites of 3 eggs beaten to a 
froth, and 1 cup of jjowdered sugar. Lay this be- 
tween the layers. 
Mix with the other half of the grated cocoanut four 
tablespoonfuls powdered sugar, and strew thickly on t)p 

of cake. 

Hosie's Cocoanut-Cake. »- 

2 cups flour. 
1^ " sugar. 



CAKE. 317 

■| cup butter. 

^ " sweet milk. 

3 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful cream-tartar. 

^ " soda. 

Sift cream-tartar and soda into the dry flour ; cream 
tlie butter and sugar ; add the beaten eggs, then the milk ; 
lastly the flour. Bake in jelly-cake tins. 

Grate one cocoanut ; mix with it a cup and a half of 
white sugar, also the milk of the cocoanut. 8et the mix- 
ture in the oven until the sugar melts ; then spi-ead be- 
tween the cakes. 

Loaf Cocoanut CAiiE. 
1 lb. sugar. 
I " butter. 
6 eggs. 
^ lb. flour. 

1 " finely grated cocoanut, stirred lightly in the last 
tiling. 

Bake immediately. 

*' One, Two, Three, Four " Cocoanut-Cake. 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups sugar. 

3 " flour. 

4 eggs (the whites only). 

1 cup milk. 

1 teaspoonfid cream-tartar, ] 

, ,, 1 > sifted into the flour. 

i soda, j 

^ small cocoanut, stirred in at the last. 



318 COMMON SENSE. 

Cocoanut-Cakes [Small). 

1 cocoanut, carefully skinned and grated. 

Milk of the same. 

1^ lb. powdered sugar. 

As much water as you have cocoanut milk. 

Whites of three eggs. 

Dissolve one pound of sugar in the milk and water. 
Stew until it becomes a " ropy " syrup, and turn out into 
a buttered dish. Have ready the beaten white of egg, 
with the remaining half-pound of sugar whipped into it ; 
mix with this the grated cocoanut, and little by little, 
beating all the while the boiled syrup, so soon as it cools 
sufficiently not to scald tlie eggs. Drop in tablespoonfula 
\;pon buttered papers. Try one first, and if it runs, beat 
in more sugar. Bake in a very moderate oven, watching 
to prevent scorching. They should not be sufiered to 
brown at all. 

These will keep some time, but are best quite fresh. 

Cocoanut Cones. 
1 lb. powdered sugar. 
4 " grated cocoanut. 
Whites of 5 eggs. 

Whip the eggs as for icing, adding the sugar as you go 
on, until it will stand alone, then beat in the cocoanut. 

Mould the mixture with your hands into small cones, 
and set these far enough apart not to touch one another, 
upon buttered paper iia a baking-pan. Bake in a very mode- 
late oven. 

Lee Cake. »|« ^ 

10 eggs 
1 lb. su.Qcar. 



CAKE. iJli' 

1 lb. flour. 

2 lemons. . 

Beat whites and yolks separately ; add to all the yolka 
and the whites of seven eggs the sugar, the riud of two 
lemons, and juice of one. Bake as for jelly-cake. 

To the whites of three eggs allow a pound and a quarter 
of powdered sugar ; beat stiff as for icing, take out enough 
to cover the toj) of the cake and set a.side. Add to the rest 
the juice and half the grated rind of a large orange. When 
the cake is nearly cold, spread this between the layers. 
Beat into the icing reserved for the top a little lemon-juice, 
and, if needed, more sugai-. It should be stiffer than that 
spread between the cakes. 

You can make a very delightful variation of this elegant 
cake, by spreading the orange icing between layers made ac- 
cording to the receipt given for " Martha's Jelly-Cake " 
several pages back, and frosting with lemon vi^ringue, as 
above. 

White-Mountain Cake. 

3 cups sugar. 

1 cup butter. , 

^ " sweet milk. 

^Vllites of ten eggs. 

i teaspoonful soda, ) ... , -,, ,^ „ 

^ ^ a . , y sifted with the flour. 

i " cream-tartar, j 

4|- cups flour. 

Flavor with essence of bitter almond. 

Icing, whites of 3 eggs, 1 lb. powdered sugar. Flavor 
■with lemon-juice. Bake in jelly-cake tins, and All mth 
gi-ated cocoanut, sweetened with a quarter of its Aveight ot 
powdered sugar, or with icing such as is made for Lee cake, 
ft'ily flavored with lemon entii-ely. 



320 coMiMON sensp:. 

French Cake. 
1 lb. sugar. 
4- " butter. 
1 " currants, washed clean and dredged with flour. 

3 cups flour. 

4 eggs. 

Nutmeg and cinnamon to taste. 

■^ teaspoonful soda dissolved in three tablespoonfula 
milk. 

Lemon-Cake (iVo. 1). 
1 lb. sugar. 

12 eggs, whites and yolks beaten separately. 
■|- lb. flour. 

Juice and rind of a lemon. 
Icing flavored with same. 
Baked in small square tins, and iced on sides and top, 
these are sometimes called biscuits glaces. 

Lemox-Cake {JSFo. 2). 

1 cup of butter (packed). 

2 scant cups of sugar. 

10 eggs, yolks and whites beaten separately. 
1 small cup of milk. 
Juice and rind of a lemon. 
1 small teaspoonful soda. 
Flour to make tolerably thin batter (between two and 
three cups). Of some qualities of flour three cups will be 
needed. 

Bake in a quick oven. 

Lady-Cake {JSFo. 1). 

^ lb. butter. 
1 " flour. 



CAKE. 321 

8 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful cream-tartar. 

•V " soda. 

1 lb. sugar. 

i pint milk. 

Lady-Cake (iVo. 2). 4» 

1 lb. sugar. 

f " sifted flour. 

6 oz. butter. 

The whipped xohites of ten eggs. 

Flavor "with bitter almond, and bake in square, not very 
deep tins. Flavor the frosting with vanilla. The combina- 
tion is very pleasant. 

Sister Mag's Cake, i^ 

2-|- cups powdered sugar. 
|- cup of butter. 
1 " sweet milk. 

3 cups flour. 

4 eggs. 

1 lemon, juice and rind. 
1 small teaspoonful soda. 

Bake in a square or oblong tin, and frost with whites 
of two eggs beaten stifl' with powdered sugar. 

Dover Cake. »J« 
1 lb. flour. 
1 " white sugar. 
\ " butter, rubbed with the sugar to a 

very light cream. 
6 eggs. 

1 cup sweet milk. 
U* 



322 coMiiON sia^fSE. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in vinegar. 
1 " powdered cinnamon. 

1 tablespoonful rose-water. 

Flavor tlie frosting with lemon-juice. 

Chocolate Cake. »^ 

2 cups of sugar. 

1 cup butter. 

The yolks of five egg? and whites of two. 

1 cup of milk. 

3|- cups Hour. 

•|- teaspoonful soda. 

1 " ci-eam-tartar, sifted into the flour. 

Bake in jelly-cake tins. 

3Iixture for filling. 

Whites of three eggs. 

1-|- cup sugar. 

3 tablespoonfuls gi'ated chocolate. 

1 teaspoonful vanilla. 

Beat well together, spread betv/een the layers and on 
top of cake. 

Caramel Cake. »J« 

3 cups sugar. 
U " butter. 

1 cup milk. 

• 4|^ cups flour. 

5 eggs. 
Small teaspoonful soda. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar. 



CA3CE. 6"Ji6 

Caramel for filling. 

\\ cup brown sugar. 
\ cup milk. 
1 " Diolasses. 

1 teaspoonful butter. 
1, tablespoonful flour. 

2 " cold water. 

Boil tliis mixture live minutes, add lialf a cak.e Baker's 
cliocolate (gi-ated), boil until it is tlie consistency of rich 
custard. Add a pincli of soda, stir well, and remove from 
fii'e. 

When cold, flavor ^vitll a large teaspoonful vanilla, and 
spread between the layers of cake, which should be baked 
as for jelly-cake. Cover the top with the same, and set id 
an open, sunny window to dry. 

The above quantity will make two large cakes. 

IMarble Oake, 

Light. 

1 cup white sugar. 
\ " butter. 
\ " milk. 
"Whites of 3 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful cream-tai-tar. 
\ " soda. 

2 cups flour. 

Dark. 
\ cup brown sugar. 
\ " butter. - 
\ " molasses. 



324 COMMON SENSE. 

^ nutmeg. 

1 teaspooiiful cinnamon. 
■^ " allspice. 

■^ " soda. 

1 " cream-tartar. 

2 Clips flour. 
Yolks of three eggs. 

Butter your mould, and put in tlie dark and ligkt bat 
ter in alternate tablespoonfuls. 

Makcled Cakk. t^ 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups powdered sugar. 

3 " flour. 

4 eggs. 

1 cup sweet milk, 

■^ teaspoonful soda. 

1 " cream-tartar sifted with the flour. 

When the cake is mixed take out about a teacupful of 
the batter, and stir into this a great spoonful of grated 
chocolate, wet with a scant tablespoonful of milk. Fill 
your mould about an inch deep with the yellow batter, and 
droj) upon this, in two or three places, a spoonful of the 
dark mixture. Give to the brown spots a slight stir with 
the tip of your spoon, spreading it in broken circles ujjon 
the lighter surface. Pour in more yellow batter, then drop 
in the brown in the same manner as before, proceeding in 
this order until all is used up. When cut, the cake will 
be found to be handsomely variegated. 

Or, 
You may color the reserved cupful of batter with enough 
prepared cochineal to give it a fine pink tint, and mix aa 
you do the brown. 



CAKE. 323 

Chocolate Icixg (Simple). 

^ cake chocolate. 

^ cup sweet milk. 

1 tablespoonful corn-starch. 

1 teaspoonful vanilla. 

Mix together these ingredients, with the exception of 
the vanilla ; boil it two minutes (after it has fairly come to 
a boil), flavor, and then sweeten to taste with powdered 
sugar, taking care to make it sweet enough. 

CARAMELb' (Chocolate). 

2 Clips brown sugar. 
1 cup molasses. 

1 tablespoonful (heaping) of butter. 

3 tablespoonfuls flour. 

Boil twenty-five minutes ; then stir in half a pound of 
grated chocolate wet in one cup of sweet milk, and boil 
until it hardens on the spoon, with which you must stir it 
frequently. Flavor ^vith a teaspoonful of vanilla. 

Chocolate Eclairs. 
4 eggs. 

The weight of the eggs in sugar. 
Half their weight in flour. 

■^ teasjioonful soda, ] sifted ivcU with the 

•^ " cream-tartar, ) flour. 

If you bake these often, it will be worth your while to 
have made at the tinner's a set of small tins, about fivo 
inches long aiid two wide, round at the bottom, and kept 
firm by strips of tin connecting them. If you cannot get 
these, tack stiflT writing-paper into the same shape, stitch- 
ing each of the little canoes to its neighbor after the man 



326 COMMON SEKSE. 

ner of a pontoon "bridge. Havo these made and buttered 
before you mix the cake ; })ut a spoonful of batter in each, 
and bake in a steady oven. When nearly cold, cover the 
rounded side with a caramel icing, made according to the 
foregoing receipt. 

These little cakes are popular favorites, and with a Lit- 
tle practice can be easily and quickly made. 

Ellie's Cake. «^ 
1 cup of sugar. 
^ " butter. 
3 eggs. 

^ cup sweet milk. 
1 teaspoonful cream-tartar. 
^ " soda. 

. 2^ cups flour. 

Bake in jelly -cake tins, and fill with jelly or chocolate. 
A simple and excellent cake. 

Sponge CaivE. 

1 teacup powdered sugar. 

3 eggs. 

•^ teaspoonful cream-tartar. 

^ " soda. 

1 teacupful floiir. 

Flavor with lemon — half the juice and half the rind of 
one. Bake twenty minutes in shallow tins. 

Mrs. M.'s Sponge-Cake. o^ 
12 eggs. 

The weight of the eggs in sugar. 
Half their weight in flour. 
1 lemon, juice and rind. 



CAKE. 32Y 

Beat yolks and -whites very liglit, tlie sugar into the 
former when they are smooth and stiff; next, the juice and 
gi'ated peel of" the lemon, then the flour ; lastly, the beateu 
•whites, very lightly. 

The lady from whom I had this admirable receipt was 
celebrated among her acquaintances for her beautiful and 
delicious sponge-cake. 

"Which should always be baked in tins like these," 
she said to me once, sportively. " or it does not taste just 
right." 

The moulds were like a large brick in shape, wdth al- 
most perpendicular sides. I instantly gave an order for a 
couple precisely like them, and really fancied that cake 
baked in them was a little better than in any other foi-m. 
Bvit you can hardly fail of success if you prepare yours pre- 
cisely as I have directed, bake in whatever shape you will. 
Be careful that yoiu* oven is steady, and cover the cake 
with paper, to prevent bu.ming. 

It is a good plan to line the pans in which sponge-cake 
is baked with buttered paper, fitted neatly to the side.*" 
and bottom. 

Pound Cake {No. 1). 
1 lb. sugar. 

1 " flour, 
f " butter. 
9 eggs. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar. 
1 " soda. 

Cream the butter and sugar with gi'eat care ; beat the 
yolks and whites separately ; sift the cream-tartar well 
through the flour. Add the floiir last. 



828 common sense. 

Pound Cake (ISTo. 2). 

1 lb. flour. 
1 " eggs. 
^ 1 " sugar. 

I " butter. 
1 glass brandy. 
1 Butmeg. 
1 teaspoouful mace. 

Cream half the flour with the butter, and add brandy and 
spice. Beat the yolks until light, add the sugar, then the 
beaten whites and the rest of the flour alternately. When 
this is thorouglily mixed, put all together and beat steadily 
i'ov half an hour. 

If properly made and baked this is a splendid cake. 



Washington Cake. 



3 cups sugar. 
2 " butter. 



1 cup milk. 
4 cups flour. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar. 
1 teaspoonful soda. 

Mix as usual and stir in, at the last, 
•^ lb. currants well washed and dredged. 
^ " raisins seeded and chopped fine, then floured. 
A handful of citron sliced fine. 
Cinnamon and niitmeg to taste. 

Fruit-cake takes longer to bake than plain, and the boat 
must be kept steady. 

Lincoln Cake. 
1 lb. butter. 
1 " sugar. 



CAKE. . 329 

1 11). flour. 
6 egg3. 

2 cups sour cream or milk. 
1 grated nutmeg. 

1 teaspoouful powdered cinnamon. 

1 tablespoouful rose-water. 

1 teaspoouful soda dissolved in hot water, and stirred 

into the milk just before adding the latter to the 

cake. 

Cream the butter and sugar, put with them t'.e yolka 
whipped light, then the cream and spice, next the flour, 
then the rose-water, and a double-handful of citron cut iu 
slips and dredged ; finally, the beaten whites of the eggs. 
Stir ail well, and bake in a loaf or in a " card," using a 
square shallow baking-pan. 

This is a good cake and keeps well. 

Black ok Wedding Cake. 

1 lb. powdered sugar. 

1 " butter. 

1 « flour. 

12 eggs. 

1 lb. currants well washed and dredged. 

1 " raisins seeded and chopped. 

•^ " citron cut into slips. 

1 tablespoouful cinnamon. 

2 teaspoonfuls nutmeg. 
1 " cloves. 
1 wineglass brandy. 

Cream the butter and sugar, add the beaten yolks of the 
eggs, and stir all well together before putting in half of the 
flour. The spice should come next, then the whipped 



330 . COMMON SENSE. 

whites stirred in alternately with the rest of the flour, 
lastly the brandy. 

The above quantity is for two large cakes. Bake at 
least two hours in deep tins lined with well-buttered j^a- 
per. 

The icing should be laid on stiff and tliickly. This 
cake, if kept in a cool, dry place, will not spoil in two 
months. 

I have eaten wedding-cake a year old. 

Test the cakes well, and be sure they are quite done 
before taking them from the oven. 

Fruit-Cake [plainer). 

1 lb. powdered sugar. 
1 " flour, 
f " butter. 

7 eggs. 

•J lb. currants — washed, picked over, and dredged. 
■^ " raisins — seeded and chopped, then dredged. 
■^ " citron cut into slips. 
1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 
1 " cinnamon. 

1 glass brandy. 

Cream butter and sugar ; add the beaten yolks, then 
the spice and the whipped whites alternately with the 
flour ; the fruit and brandy last. 

Almond Cake. 

1 lb. powdered sugar. 
1 « flour. 
^ " butter. 

8 e^gs. 



CAKE. • olU 

1 coffee-cupful sweet almonds, blanched by putting tlieni 

into hot water, and, when stripped of their skiiia 
and perfectly cold, beaten to a smooth j^aste in a 
Wedgewood mox-tar, with a Kttle rose-water and half a 
teaspoonful essence of bitter aJjnonds, 

Beat whites and yolks separately ; stir butter and svigai 
to a cream ; add to this the yolks ; beat very hard before 
putting in the flour ; stir in the almond-paste alternately 
with the whites. Put in the brandy last. 

Season the icing with rose-water. 

Nut-Caice. i^ 

2 cups sugar. 
1 cup butter. 

3 cups flour. 

1 cup cold water. 

4 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar. 

2 cupfuls kernels of hickory-nuts or white walnuts, 
carefully picked out, and added last of all. 

Gold Cake, i^ 
1 lb. sugar. 
^ " butter. 
1 « flour. 

Yolks of ten eggs — well beaten. 
Grated rind of one orange, and juice of two lemons. 
1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot watfc:*.- 

Cream the butter and sugar, and stir in the yolks. 
Beat very hard for fiA^e minutes before putting in the flour. 
The soda next, and lastly the lemon-juice, in which the 
gi'ated orange-peel should have been steeped and strained 



832 



COMMON SENSE. 



out in a piece of tliin muslin, leaving the flavoring and 
coloring matter in the juice. 

i'lavor the icing also with lemon. 

Silver Cake. »J« 
1 lb. sugar. 
f " flour. 
^ " butter. 

Whites of ten eggs — whiiiped very stiff. 
1 lax'ge teaspoonful essence bitter almonds. 

Cream butter and sugar ; put next the whites of the 
eggs • then the flour, lastly the flavoring. 

]\Iake gold and silver cake on the same day ; bake them 
in tins of corresponding size, and lay them in alternate 
slices in the cake-basket. Jblavor the icing of silver cake 
with rose-water. 

Almond Macaroons. 

Prepai'e the almonds the day before you make the cakes, 
by blanching them in boiling water, stripping off the skins, 
and pounding them when perfectly cold — a few at a time — ■ 
in a Wedgewood mortar, adding from time to time a little 
rose-water. When beaten to a smooth paste, stir in, to a 
pound of the sweet almonds, a generous tablespoonful of 
essence of bitter almonds ; cover closely, and set away in a 
cold place until the morrow. Then to a pound of the nuts 
allow : — 

1 lb. powdered sugar. 

The beaten whites of eight eggs, and 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

Stir the sugar and white of egg lightly together ; then 
whip in gradually the almond-paste. 

Line a broad baking-pan with buttered white paper ; 



CAKE. 333 

drop upon this spoonfuls of the mixture at such diytances 
apart as shall j) re vent their running together. Sift pow- 
dered sugar thickly upon each, and bake in a quick oven 
to a delicate brown. 

Try the mixture first, to make sure it is of the right 
consistency, and if the macaroons run into irregular shapes, 
beat in more sugar. This will hardly happen, however, il 
the mixture is already well beaten. 

Huckleberry Cake. »J« 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups sugai". 

3 cujis flour. 
5 eggs. 

1 cup sweet milk. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 

1 " nutmeg, and the same of cinnamon. 

1 quart ripe, fresh huckleberries, thickly dredged with 

flour. 

Stir the butter and sugar to a cream, add the beaten 
yolks; then the milk, the flour, and spice, the whites whip- 
ped stiff, and the soda. At the last stir in the huckleber- 
ries with a wooden spoon or paddle, not to bruise them. 
Bake in a loaf or card, in a moderate but steady oven, untiflBi 
a straw comes out clean from the thickest part. m^ 

This is a delicious cake, and deserves to be better known. 

Corn-Starch Cake. 4« 

2 cups sugar, ) ii , , 

T 1 x^ r rubbed to a cream. 

1 cup butter, J 

1 cup milk. 

2 cups flour. 

3 eggs, whites and yolks beaten separately. 



€ 



334 COMMON sekkt:. 

1 cup corn-starch. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar, sifted well through the flour. 
1 " soda, dissolved in hot water. 

Sifr. the corn-starch with the flour, and add the last thing. 
Bake in small tins and eat while fresh. They dry in two 
or three days and become insipid, but ai'e very nice foi 
twenty-four hours after they are baked. 

White Cake. 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups sugar. 

1 cap sweet milk. 
Whites of five eggs. 

3 cups flour. 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar. 
1 " soda. 



. COOKIES, ETC. 
Mrs. B.'s Cookies. *^ 

6 eggs, whites and yolks separately. 

1 cup butter. 

3 cups sugar. 
Flour to make batter just stiflF enough to be moulded 
ith well-floured hands. 
Flavor with lemon. 
Make into round cakes and bake in a quick oven. 



Small Sugar Cakes. 

1 heaping teacup of sugar. 
|- teacup of butter. 

■^ teacup sweet milk. 

2 eggs, well beaten. 



COOKIES, ETC. 335 

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tarbar. 

1 " soda dissolved in Lot water. 

Flour sufficient to enable you to roll out the dough, 

1 saltspoonful salt. 

Nutmeg and cinnamon to taste. 

Cut into round cakes and bake quickly. 

. New Year's Cakes. ( Yery nice.) »J< 

1;^ lb. sugar. 

1 lb. butter. 

^ pint cold water. 

2 eggs. 

3;^ lbs. flour. 

1 teaspoonfvil soda dissolved in hot water. 
4 tablesjioonfuls caraway seed sprinkled through the 
flour. 

. Rub the butter, or, what is better, chop it up in the 
flour ; dissolve the sugar in the water ; mix all well with 
the beaten eggs, cut in square cakes, or with an oval mould, 
and bake quickly. 



" Mother's " Cookies. 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups sugar. 

3 eggs, well beaten. 

^ teaspoonful soda dissolved in boiling water. 
1 " nutmeg. 

■J- " cloves. 

Flour to make soft dough, just stiif enough to roll out. 
Try two cuj)S to begin with, working it in gi-adually. Cut 
in round cakes, stick a raisin or currant in the top of each, 
and bake quickly. 



» 



c 



336 common sense. 

Coriander Cookies. »{< 
1 cup butter. 

3 cups sugar. 

1 cup " loppered " milk or cream. 

4 eggs. 

7 cups flour, or just enough to stiffen into arollahle paste. 

2 tablespoonfuls coriander seed (ground or beaten). 
1 " soda, dissolved in boiling watex*. 

If you use sweet milk, add two teaspoonfuls cream- 
tartar. You may substitute caraway for the coriander 
seed. 

Kice-Flour Cookies. 

■|- lb. ground rice. 

"I" " flour, dried and sifted. 

1 '* powdered sugar. 

I " butter. 

4 eggs. 

Juice and half the grated rind of a lemon. 

1 tablespoonful orange-flower water. 

Beat yolks and whites vsri/ light ; then put the sugar 
with, the yolks. Beat ten minutes, add the orange-flower 
ater and lemon ; lastly, the flour and whites alternately, 
eat the mixture half an hour. Bake immediately in patty- 
pans. Eat while fresh. 

Molasses Cookies. {Good.) 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups molasses. 
1 teaspoonful cloves. 
1 tablespoonful ginger. 

Sufficient floiir to make stiff baiter, not dough. Mould 



COOKIES, ETC. 337 

with the hands into small cakes, and bake in a steady rather 
than quick oven, as they are ajjt to burn. 

Ginger- SxAPS {JVo. 1). 
1 cup butter. 
1 " molasses. 
1 " sugar. 
|- " sweet milk. 

1 teaspoonful saleratus. 

2 " ginger. 

Flour for tolerably stiff dough. 

Ginger-Snaps {2Vo. 2). *^ 

1 large cup butter and lard mixed. 

1 coflee-cup sugar. 

1 Clip molasses. 

■|- " water. 

1 tablespoonful ginger. 

1 " cinnamon. 

1 teaspoonful cloves. 

1 " soda dissolved in hot water. 

Flour for pretty stiff dough. 

Roll out rather thinner than sugar cakes, and bake 
quickly. These ginger-snaps will keep for Aveeks, if locked 
up. 

Ginger-Snaps {JVo. 3). 

1 pint molasses. 

1 teacup sugar. 

1 tablespoonfid ginger. 

1 " allspice. 

1 dip Dutter. 

5 cups flour. 

Hell thin and cut into small cakes. Bake in quick oveji, 
15 



338 common sense. 

Aunt Marg^vret's Jumbles. 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups sugar. 

1 teacvip milk. • j^ 

6 eggs. 

] teaspoonful soda dissolved in boiling water. 

1 " nutmeg. 

Sufficient flo\ir to make soft dough. Roll out, cut into 
sliapes, and sift sugar over them before they go into the 
oven. ' 

Lemon Jumbles. 

1 egg. 

1 teacupful sugar. 

\ " butter. 

3 teaspoonfuls milk. 

1 " cream-tartar. 
-|- " soda. 

2 small lemons, juice of two and grated rind of one. 

Mix rather stiff. Roll and cut out vsdth a cake-cutter. 

Ring Jumbles. 
1 lb. butter. 
1 " sugar. 
4 eggs. 

1^ lb. flour, or enough to make out a soft dough. 
Wineglass (small) rose-water. 

Cream the butter and sugar, add the beaten yolks, then 
the rose-water, next half the flour, lastly the wliites, stirred 
in very lightly, alternately with the remaining flour. Have 
ready a pan, broad and shallow, lined on the bottom with 
biittered paper. With a tablespoon form regular rings of 



JUMBLES, CAKES, ETC. . 33& 

tlic dough upon this, leaving a hole in the centre of each. 
Bake quickly, and sift fine sugar over them as soon as they 
are done. 

You may substitute lemon or vanilla for the rose-water, 

Mrs. M.'s Jumbles. 
1 cup sugar. 
1 " butter. 
^ " sour cream. 
1 egg. 

1 teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 
Nutmeg to taste. 

Bake in rings, as directed in previous receipt. 

Almond Jumbles. 
1 lb. sugar. 
J- " flour. 
I " butter. 

1 teacup " loppered " milk. 
5 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls rose-water." 

1^ lb. almonds, blanched and choj^ped small, but not 

pounded. 
1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in boiling water. 

Cream, butter, and sugar ; stir in the beaten yolks, the 
milk, the flour, and the rose-water, the almonds, lastly the 
beaten whites very lightly and quickly. Drop in rings or 
round cakes upon buttered paper, and bake immediately. 

You may substitute grated cocoanut, or the chopped 
kernels of white walnuts, for the almonds, iii which case 
add a little salt. 



340 COMMON SENSE. 

CuRRAKT Cakes. 
1 lb. flour. 
I " butter, 
f " sugar. 
4 eggs. 

|- lb. currants, well washed and dredged, 
i- teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 
^ lemoUj grated rind and juice. 
1 teaspoonful cinnamon. 
Drop from a spoon upon well-buttered paper, lining a 
baking-pan. Bake quickly. 

Drop Sponge-cakes. 

4- lb. powdered sugar. 

i " flour. 

4 eggs — ^yolks and whites separate, and beaten very 

stiff". 
1 lemon — all the juice, and half the grated rind. 
Drop upon buttered paper, not too near together. Try 
cue, and if it runs, beat the mixture some minutes longer 
hard, adding a very little flour. Your oven should be very 
quick, and the cakes a delicate yellow brown. 

Lady's Fingers 

Are mixed like drop sponge-cakes, but disposed upon the 
paper in long, narrow cakes. They are very nice dipped 
in chocolate icing, or caramel. 

Aunt Margaret's Crullers. »J< 

1 lb. butter. 
1^ lb. i^owdered sugar. 
/ 12 eggs. 

Mace and nutmeg to taste. 
Flour to roll out stifi". 



CEULLEES. 34:1 

This is for a large quantity of crullers. Roll out in a 
hliin sheet, cut into shapes with a jagging-iron, and fry in 
plenty of boiling lard. Test the heat first by dropping iu 
one. It should rise almost instantly to the surface. Crul- 
lers and doughnuts soak in fat at the bottom of the kettle. 
These should be a line yellow. 

The most delicious and the nicest-looking crullers I 
have ever seen were made by the dear old lady from whom 
I had this receipt. They were as pretty and perfect a 
picture of their kind as she was of hers. 

Crullers are better the second day than the first. If 
the fat becomes so hot that the crullers brown before they 
puff out to their full dimensions, take the kettle from the 
fire for a few minutes. Have enough cut out befoi'e you 
begin to fry them, to keep a good supply all the while on 
the fire. If you undertake the task aloie, cut oiit all be- 
fore cooking one. 

' Katie's Crullers. 

1 lb. sugar. 

\ " butter. 

6 eggs. 

1 tablespoonful sweet milk. 

1 small teaspoonful soda. 

1 nutmeg. 

Sufficient flour to roll out stiff. 

" Mother's " Crullers, 

1^- teacup sugar, 

\ teacup sour cream or milk. 

\ " butter. 

1 small teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 
Floux to roll out a tolerably stiff paste. 



342 COIkDiION SENSE. 

Annie's Crullers. 

2 cups siigar. 

1 cup butter. 

2 eggs. 

2 cups sour milk. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 

Flour to roll o\n tolerably stiff. 

Risen Doughnuts. 

1 lb. butter. 

1|- lb. sugar. 

1 quart sweet milk. 

4 eggs. 

1 large cup yeast. 

1 tablespoonful mace or nutmeg. 

2 teaspoonfuls cinnamon, 

Floiir to make all stiff as bread-dough. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Cream the butter and sugar, add the milk, yeast, and one 
quart and a pint of flour. Set to rise over night. In the 
morning beat the eggs very light, and stir into the batter 
with the spice and rest of the flour. Set to rise three hours, 
or until light ; roll into a pretty thick sheet, cut out, and 
fry in boiling lard. Sift powdered sugar over them wliila 
hot. 

Quick Doughnuts. 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups siigar. 
4 eggs. 

1 cup soiir milk or cream. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 



CEULLERS, DOUGHNUTS, ETC. 343 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

•^ " cinuamon. 

rioui- to roll out in pretty soft dough.. 

Cut into shapes, and fry in hot lard. 

Soft Gingerbread. *^ 

1 cup butter. 

1 " molasses. 

1 " sugar. 

1 " sour or buttermilk. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in boiling water. 

1 tablespoonful ginger. 

1 teaspoonful cinnamon. 

2 eggs. 

jibout five cvips of flour — enoxigh to make it thick aa 
ciij'-cake batter, jierhaps a trifle thicker. Work in four 
cups first, and add very cautiously. 

Stir butter, sugai-, molasses, and spice together to a 
light cream, set tliem on the range until slightly warm; 
beat the eggs light; add the milk to the warmed mixture, 
then the eggs, the soda, and lastly the flour. Beat very 
hard ten minutes, and bake at once in a loaf, or in small 
tins. Half a pound raisins, seeded and cut in half, will 
improve this excellent gingerbread. Dredge them well 
before pvittiug them in. Add them at the last. 

Sponge Gingerbread {eggless). »J« 

5 cups flour. 

1 heaping tablespoonful butter. 

1 cup molasses. 

1 " sugar. 

1 " milk (sour is best). 

2 teaspoonfuls saleratus, not soda, dissolved in hot water 



344 COMMON SENSE. 

2 teaspoonfuls ginger. 

1 " cinnamon. 

Mix tho molasses, sugar, butter, and spice together j 
warm them slightly, and beat until they are lighter in col- 
or by many degrees than when you began. Add the milk, 
then the soda, and having mixed all well, put in the flour. 
Beat very hard five minutes, and bake in a broad, shallow 
pan, or in joaie-tins. Half a pound of seeded raisins cut 
in pieces will be a pleasant addition. 

Try this gingerbread warm for tea or luncheon, with 
a cup of hot chocolate to accompany it, and you will soon 
repeat the experiment. 

Plain Gingerbread. 

2 cups molasses. 
^ " lard. 

1 " butter. 

2 teaspoonfuls soda dissolved in hot water. 
2 tablespoonfuls ginger. 

1 cup sour milk. 

Thicken with flour to a soft dough. 

Warm the molasses, lard, bxitter, and ginger, and beai 
them ten minutes before adding the milk, soda, and flour. 
Boll out, cut into shapes, and bake in a quick, but not 
too hot oven. Keep in a tight tin box. Brush over with 



Gingerbread Loaf (No. 1). 

1 cup butter. 

1 " molasses. 

1 " sugar. 

^ " cold watsr. 

1 tablespoonful ginger. 



GDfGEKBEEAD. 345 

1 teaspoouful cinnamon. 

1 " soda, dissolved in boiling water. 

Flour to make stiff batter. 
Melt tlie butter, slightly warm the molasses, spice, and 
sugar, and beat together ten minutes. Then put in the 
water, soda, and flour. Stir very hard, and bake in three 
small loaves. Brush them over with syrup while hot, and 
eat fresh. 

Loaf Gingerbkead (No 2). 

1 cup butter. 

2 cups molasses. 

1 tablespoonful ginger. 

2 eggs, very well beaten. 
1 teaspoouful saleratus. 

1 cup milk, sweet or sour. If sour, heap youy spoon 
with saleratus. 

Flour to the consistency of pound-cake. 

Spiced Gingerbread. 

1 lb. floxir, 

1 " sugar. 

^ " butter. 

5 eggs. 

■^ teaspoouful soda dissolved in hot water. 

1 " cream-tartar. 

3 tablespoonfuls sweet milk. 

1 large tablespoonful ginger. 

1 teaspoonful cloves. 

1 " nutmeg. 

1 " cinnamon. 

Cream the sugar and butter, stir in the beaten yolks, 
the milk and spice, the soda, and when these are well mixed^ 
the flour. Bake in tvo square or round loaves. 
1.5* 



346 COililON SExVSE. 

Sugar Gingerbread. ^ 

1 cup of butter. 

2 cups of sugar. 

1 cup sour cream or milk. 

3 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 

2 tablespoonfuls ginger. 
1 teas2:)oonful cinnamon. 

6-|- cups of flour, or enough to roll out soft. Cut in 
shapes, brush over A\T.th white of egg Avhile hot, and bake. 

Bread Cake. 

On baking-day, take from your dough, after its second 
rising — 2 cups risen dough. Have ready, also — 

2 cups white sugar. 

1 cup butter, creamed with the sugar. 

3 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 

2 tablespoonfuls sweet milk — cream is better. 
^ lb. currants, well washed and dredged. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

1 " cloves. 

Beat the yolks very light, add the creamed butter and 
sugar, the spice, milk, soda, and dough. Stir until all are 
well mixed ; put in the beaten whites, lastly the fruit. 
Beat hard five minutes, let it rise twenty minutes in two 
well-buttered pans, and bake half an hour or until done. 

Fruit Gingerbread. 

2 lis. flour, 
f " butter. 

1 " sugar. ' 



SWEET AVAFEKS. 347 

1 lb. Raisins, seeded aud chopped. 

1 " currants, well washed. 

2 cups molasses. 
■^ cup sour cream. 
6 eggs. 

1 heaping teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 

2 tablespoonfuls ginger. 
1 teaspoonful cinnamon. 
1 " cloves. 

Cream the butter and sugar, warm the molasses slightly, 
and beat these together ; then the beaten yolks, next the 
milk and spice, the soda, the flour and whites, well whip- 
ped ; lastl)^ the fruit, which must be thickly dredged. Beat 
well before baking. 

A little citron, shred fine, is an improvement. Bake in 
two broad pans, in a moderate oven. This cake will keep 
a long time. 

Sweet Wafers. 

G eggs. 

1 pint flour. 

2 oz. melted butter. 

1|^ cup powdered sugar. 

1 cup milk. 

1 teaspoonful n\itmeg. 

Beat whites and yolks separately and very stiff, rub the 
sugar and butter together, and work in first the yolks, then 
the milk, then the flour and whites. Bake in well-but- 
tered wafer or waffle irons, very quickly, browning as little 
as possible. Boll them while hot upon a smooth, round 
stick, not larger tlian your little finger, slipping it out care- 
fully when the cake takes the right shape. 

These little cakes are an accejitable addition to any 



348 COMMON SENSE. 

tea or supper table, and look well among fancy cakes in a 
basket. 

Boston Ceeam Cakes. *J« 

^ lb. butter. 
I " flom-. 

8 eggs. 

1 pint water. 

Stir the butter into the water, which should be wa^ m, 
sei it on the fire in a saucepan, and sloAvly bring to a boU, 
stirring it often. When it boils, jiut in the flour, boil one 
minute, stirring all the while ; take from the fire, t\iiii into 
a deep dish, and let it cool. Beat the eggs very light, and 
whip into this cooled paste, first 'the yolks, then the whites. 

Drop, in great spoonfuls, upon buttered paper, taking 
care not to let them touch or run into each other, and bake 
ten minutes. 

Cream for Jilling. 

1 quart milk. 

4 tablespoonfuls corn-starch. 

2 cups sugar. 

Wet the coin-starch with enough milk to work it into 
a smooth paste. Boil the rest of the milk. Beat the eggs, 
add the sugar and corn-starch to these, and so soon as the 
milk boils pour in the mixture gradually, stii-ring all the 
time until smooth and thick. Drop in a teaspoon ful of but- 
ter, and when this is mixed in, set the custard aside to cool. 
Then add A'anilla or lemon seasoning; jiass a sharp knife 
lightly around the pufls, split them, and fill with the mix- 
ture. 

The best cream cakes I have ever tasted were made by 
this somewhat odd receipt. 

Try it. 



PIES. 349 

Nougat. 

1 lb. sweet almonds. 

1^ " fine white sugar. 

1 tabl^spoonful rose-water. 

Blanch the almonds in boiling water. AVhen stripped 
of their skins, throw them into ice-water for five minutes. 
Take them out and dry between two cloths. Shave with 
a small knife into thin slips. Put them into a slow oven 
until they are very slightly colored. Meanwhile, melt the 
sugar — without adding water — in a porcelain kettle over 
the fii'e, stirring it all the while to keep it from burning. 
When it bubbles up and is quite melted take ofi" the kettle 
and instantly stir in the hot almonds. Have ready a tin 
pan or mould, Avell buttered and slightly Avarmed. Poiir 
in the nougat ; pi-ess it thin and flat to the bottom of the 
pan if you mean to cut it into strips ; to all sides of the 
mould if you intend to fill it with syllabub or macaroons. 
Let it cool in the mould, for the latter purpose, withdraw- 
ing it carefully when you want it. If you cut it up, do it 
while it is still warm — not hot. 

The syiiip should be a bright yellow before putting in 
the almonds. 



PIES. 

Use none bvit the best bvitter in pastry. 

" Cooking butter is a good thing," said a grave epicuro 
to me once, " an admirable thing — in its place, which is in 
the soap-fat kettle or upon wagon-wheels ! " 

It is certainly out of place in biscuits, cake, or in any 
substance destined for hiunan palates and stomachs. It ia 
never less in j)lace than in pastry ; never betn^ys its vile- 
ness more surely and odiously. 



350 COMMON SENSE. 

Butter intended for pastry should be waslied carefully 
in several clear, cold waters, and kneaded while under 
water, to extract the salt. Then wipe it dry, and lay it in a 
cold place until yovi are ready to work it in. 

" Keep cool," is a cardinal motto for pastry-makers. 
A mai'ble slab is a good thing to roll out paste uj^on. Next 
to this, the best article is a clean board of hard wood, which 
is never used for any other purjjose. It is harder to make 
good pastry in warm weather than cold, on account of the 
tendency of the butter to oil, and thus render the crust 
heavy and solid. 

Few people know what really good jiastry is. Fewer 
still can make it. It has no inevitable resemblance either 
to putty or leather. It is light, crisp, flaky, goodly to be- 
hold — goodlier to the taste. 

" Pork fat and pies kill more people yearly in the 
United States than do liquor and tobacco," said a popular 
lecturer upon conservatism. 

Perhaps so ; but I incline to the belief that bad pastry 
is answerable for a vast majority of the murders. Not that 
I recommend pies of aiiy description as healthful daily food 
■ — least of all for children. But since they are eaten freely 
all OA'er our land, let us make them as wholesome and pa- 
latable as possible. 

Family Pie-Crust (No. 1). »J4 

1 quart flour. 

^ lb. lard, sweet and firm. 

I " butter; 

1 small teacup ice-water. 

Sift the flour into a deej) wooden bowl. With a broad- 
bladed knife, or a small keen " chojjper," cut up the lard 
into the flour until it is fine as dust. Wet with ice- 



PIES. 351 

water into a stiff^dougli, -working it with a wooden spoon 
until obliged to make it into a roll or ball with your hands. 
Flour these, and knead the paste into shape with as fev* 
strokes as will eftect your end. Lay the lump upon a 
floured kneading-board and roll it out into a thin sheet, 
always rolling from you with quick, light action. Wheu 
thin enough, stick bits of butter in regular close rows all 
over the sheet, using a knife for this purpose rather than 
your hands. Roll up the paste into close folds as you 
would a sheet of music. Flatten it that your rolling-pin 
can take hold, and roll out again as thin as before. Baste, 
roll up and then out, until your butter is gone. It is a 
good plan to sprinkle the inside of each sheet with a little 
flour after buttering it, before making it into a loll. Finally, 
make out your crust ; butter your pie-plates, lay the paste 
lightly within them, cut it oS evenly about the edges after 
fitting it neatly ; gather up the sci'aps left from cxitting, 
and make into another sheet. If the pies are to have a 
top crust, fill the plates with fruit or whatever you have 
ready, lay the paste on this, cut it to fit, and press down 
the edges to prevent the escape of the juice, with a spoon, 
knife, or jagging-iron, ornamenting it in a regular figure. 

Bake in a moderate oven until a light brown. Be 
particularly careful to have your heat as great at the 
bottom as at the top, or the lower crust will be clammy 
and raw. 

Pastry is always best when fresh. 

It is well, when you can spare the time, to lay the roll, 
when all the butter is used up, in a very cold place for fif- 
teen minutes or so before rolling it into crust. Indeed, 
some good hovisewives let it stand on the ice an hour in hot 
weather. They say it tends to make it flaky as well as firm. 

Touch as little with your hands as may be practicable. 



352 COMMON SENSE. 

Family Pie-Crust (iVo. 2). t^t 

1 lb. flour. 
I '< butter. 

1 teaspoonful soda. 

2 teasjjoonfuls cream-tartar. 
Ice-water to make into a stiff dough. 

Cliop half the butter into the flour until it looks like 
yellow sand (sift the soda and cream-tartar with the flour, 
passing it through the sieve twice to make sure it is well 
mixed) ; work with ice-water into stiff dough ; roll into a 
thin sheet, baste with one-third the remaining butter, fold 
up closely into a long roll, flatten and re-roll, then baste 
again. Repeat this operation three times, until the butter 
is gone, when make out your crust. 

This is an easy and sure receipt, and the paste very 
fine. 

Fksnch Puff-Paste. pJ« 

1 lb. flour. 

f " butter. 

1 egg ; use the yolk only. 

Ice-water. 

Chop half the butter into the flour ; stir the beaten egg 
into half a cup ice-waber, and work the flour into a stiff 
dough ; roll out tJdn, baste with one-third the remaining but- 
ter, fold closely, roll out again, and so on. until the butter is 
used vip. Roll very thin,* and set the last folded roll in a 
very cold place ten or fifteen minutes before making out 
the crust. "Wash with beaten egg while hot. This paste is 
very nice for oyster-^ a^e* as well as for frviit-pies. 



PIES. 353 

Puff-Paste. 

1 pint flour. 

■J lb. butter. 

1 egg, well beaten. Use the yolk only. 

1 gill ice-water. 
Mix the flour, a tablespoonful of butter, the beaten egg, 
and ice-water into a paste with a wooden spoon. Floui 
your j)astry-boar(l, and roll ovit the ciust very thin. Put 
the rest of the butter, when you have washed it, in the 
centre of this sheet, in a flat cake. Turn the four corners 
of the paste over it, and roll ovit carefully, not to break the 
paste. Shovild it give way, flour the spot, that it may not 
stick to the roller. When very thin, sprinkle lightly with 
flour, fold up, and I'oll oiit four times more. Set in a cool 
place for an hour, roll out again, and cut into tartlet-shella 
or top crust for pies. 

The bottom crust of pies may often be made of plainei 
pastry than the upper. 

Traxsparent Crust. ( Ver^ rich.) 

1 lb. flour. 

1 " butter. 

1 egg — the yolk only. 
Wash the butter, dry, and then melt it in a vessel set 
in another of boiling water, stirring gently all the while to 
prevent oiling. Take oflT the salty scum from the top, and 
when almost cold beat up the butter little by little with the 
egg, which should be previously whipped light. When 
these are thoroughly incorporated work in the flour, roll 
out twice, sprinkling lightly with flour before you fold it 
up ; let it stand folded five minutes in a cold place, and 
make oxxt for tartlets or 2)dt('s. It is not suitable for large 
pies. Bake before you fill them, and brush over with a 
beaten egg while hot. 



35 i COMMON SENSE. 

Mince Pies (i\^o. 1). 

4 ibs. meat — i. e., two-thirds apple, one-third meat. 
3 " raisins, seeded and chopped. 

2 " currants, washed, picked over, and dried. 

3 quarts cider. 
1 pint brandy. 

1 heaping tablespoonful cinnamon. 

1 " " nutmeg. 

The same of cloves, and half the quantity of mace. 
Make very sweet wdth brown sugar. 

The meat should be a good piece of lean beef, boiled 
the day before it is needed. Half a po\ind of raw suet, 
chopped fine, may be added. Chop the meat, clean out 
bits of skin and gristle, and mix with twice the quantity 
of fine juicy apples, also chopped ; then put in the fruit, 
next the sugar and spice, lastly the liquor. Mix very thor- 
oiighly, cover closely, and let all stand together for twenty- 
foui' hours before making the pies. 

Mince Pies (i\^o. 2). *J* 

2 lbs. lean fresh be*f, boiled, and when cold, chopped 

fine. 

1 lb. beef-suet, cleared of strings and minced to powder, 
6 lbs. apples, pared and chopped. 

2 " raisins, seeded and chopped. 

1 lb. sultana raisins, washed and picked over. 

2 lbs. currants, washed and carefully picked over. 
1^ lb. citron, cut up fine. 

2 tablespoonful s cinnamon. 

1 powdered nutmeg. 

2 tablespoonfuls mace. 
1 tablespoonful cloves. 
1 ** allspice. 



PIES. 355 

1 tablespoonful fine salt. 
2|- lbs. bi-own sugar. 
1 quart brown sherry. 
1 2)iut best brandy. 

Mince-nieat made by.tliis receipt will keep all winter in 
a cool place. Keep in stone jars, tied over with double 
covers. Add a little more liquor (if it should dry out), 
when yo\i make up a batch of pies. Let the mixtui'e stand 
at least twenty-four hours after it is made before it is used. 

Lay strijjs of pastry, notched with a jagging-iron, in a 
cross-bar pattern, upon the pie, instead of a top-crust. 

I take this opportunity of warning the innocent reader 
against placing any confidence whatever in dried currants. 
I years ago gave over trying to guess who put the dirt in 
them. It is always there ! gravel-stones lurking under a 
specious coating of curranty-looking paste, to crucify grown 
people's nerves and children's teeth ; mould that changes 
to mud in the mouth ; twigs that piick the throat, not to 
mention the legs, wings, and bodies of troj)ical insects — a 
curious study to one interested in the entomology of Zante. 
It is all dirt ! although sold to us at currant prices. 

Wash your currants, therefore, first in warm water, 
rolling up yovir sleeves, and rubbing the conglomerate 
masses apart, as you would scrub a muddy garment. Drain 
them in a cullender, and pass them through three more 
waters — cold now, but cleansing. Then spread them vipon 
a large dish, and enter seriously upon your geological and 
entomological I'esearches. " Sultanas " — sweet and seed- 
less — are nearly as troublesome, but theii- specialty is more 
harmless, being stickiness and stems. 

Nevertheless, since John has a weakness for mince-pies 
(I never saw an un-dyspeptic man who had not), it is woi'th 
your while to make them, having this consolation, that if 



S56 CO^fMON SENSE. 

you are wise you need not engage in the manufacture of 
tener tlian once, or at most, twice a winter. But let the 
cliildi-en taste them sjiaringly, and never at night, if you 
value their health and your own sound slumbers. 

Apple Mince-Meat. 

2 lbs. apples — pared and chopped. 

1^ lb. beef suet — cleared of strings and powdered. 

1 " ctu-rants. 

^ " raisins, seeded and chopped. 

I" " siiltana raisins. 

|- " citron, cut into shreds. 

1 lemon — juice and grated rind. 

1 tablespoonful cinnamon. 

1 teaspoonful cloves. 

1 " mace. 

1 tablespoonful allspice. 

2 lbs. brown sugar. 
Half-pint best brandy. 
A glass of Avine. 

2 teaspoonfuls salt. 

Pack down in a stone jar, with close cover, and keep in 
a cool place. 

Mock Mince-Meat. »J« 

6 soda crackers — rolled fine. 

2 cups cold water. 

1 cup molasses. 

1 " brown sugar. 

1 " sour cider. 

1^ cup melted butter. 

1 cup raisins — seeded and chopped. 

1 " cui'rants. 



PIES. 857 

2 eggs — beaten light. 

1 tablespoonful cinnamon and allspice mixed. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

1 " cloves. 

1 « salt. 

1 " black pepper. 

1 wineglass of brandy. 

" ]\Iince-pie in summer is a pleasant rarity," was the 
remark of a party of hungry travellers, in semi-apology for 
the fact that every plate made a return journey to th9 
comely landlady, who was dispensing generous triangles of 
pie. She smiled gi-atifiedly, but said nothing in reply, un- 
til, when the gentlemen had strolled off to the woods with 
their cigars, she came upon me, seated alone on the piazza, 
and grew confidential under the influence of that sort of 
fi'ee-masonic understanding housekeepers have with one 
another, almost at sight. 

" I had to laugh," said the good soul, *' when they 
praised my mince-jiies. They're healthfuller in summer- 
time than the real thing." 

I took down the receipt on the spot from her lips. If 
any one doubts the merits of the counterfeit, let her do as I 
did — trv it. 

Apple Pie {JV^o. 1). *J* 

Pare, core, and slice ripe, tart winter apples — Pippins, 
Greenings, or Baldwins — line your dish with a good crust, 
put in a layer of fruit, then sprinkle light-brown sugar 
tliickly over it, scatter half a dozen whole cloves upon this, 
lay on more apples, and so on, until the dish is well filled. 
Cover with criist and bake. Sift powdered sugar over the 
top before sending to table. 



358 COMMON SENSE. 

Apple Pie {JSfo. 2). «^ 

Stew green or ripe apples when you have pared and 
cored them. Mash to a smooth compote, sweeten to taste, 
and, while hot, stir in a teaspoonfnl butter for each pie. 
Season with nutmeg. When cool, fill your crust, and 
either cross-bar the top with strips of paste, or bake with 
out cover. 

Eat cold, with powdered sugar strewed over it. 

Apple Custard Pie. ej* 

3 cups stewed apple. 
Nearly a cup white sugar. 
6 eggs. 
1 quart milk. 

Make the stewed apple very sweet, and let it cool. Beat 
the eggs Ught, and mix the yolks well with the apple, sea- 
soning with nutmeg only. Then stir in gradually the milk, 
beating as you go on ; lastly add the whites ; fill your crust 
and bake without cover. 

Apple Meringue Pies. ^ 

Stew and sweeten ripe, juicy apples, when you have 
pared and sliced them. Mash smooth, and season with 
nutmeg. If yon like the flavor, stew some lemon-peel with 
the apple, and remove when cold. Fill your crust, and 
bake imtil just done. Spread over the apple a thick 
meringue, made by whipping to a stiff froth the whites of 
three eggs for each pie, sweetening with a tablespoonful 
of powdered sugar for each egg. Flavor this with rose- 
water or vanilla ; beat until it will stand alone, and cover 
the pie three-quarters of an inch thick. Set back in the 
oven until the meringue is well " set." Should it color too 
darkly, sift powdered sugar over it when cold. Eat cold. 



PIES. 359 

They are very fine. 

Peach pies are even more deKcious, made in this manner. 

Pippin Pies. 

12 fine ripe pippins, pared and grated. 

1 lb. white sugar. 

•^ lb. butter. 

6 eggs — whites and yolks separately beaten. 

1 lemon — grated peel and juice, with nutmeg. 
Cream the butter and sugar, stir in the beaten yolks, 
then the lemon, nutmeg, and apple ; lastly the wliites, very 
lightly. Bake in paste, with cross-bars of the same on top. 

Pumpkin Pie (No. 1). >^ 

1 quart stewed pumpkin — pressed through a sieve. 
9 eggs — whites and yolks beaten separately. 

2 quarts milk. 

1 teaspoonful mace. 

1 " cinnamon, and the same of nutmeg. 

1^ cup white sugar, or very light brown. 
Beat all well together, and bake in crust without cover. 

Pumpkin Pie (jSTo. 2). 

1 quart pumpkin — stewed and strained. 
1 " milk. 
1 cup sugar. 

7 eggs — beaten very light. 

1 teaspoonful ginger, and same of mace and cinnamoa 
each. 

Squash Pie 

Is made precisely like pumpkin pie, except that, being 
less rich, it req^iires one more egg for each pie. 



360 COMMON £5EJSrSE. 

Sweet-Potato Pie (No. 1). 

Parboil, skin, and slice crosswise fii-m sweet potatoes. 
Line a dis|h with paste, put in a layer of sliced potato, 
sprinkle thickly with svigai*, scatter among them a few- 
whole cloves, and cover with more slices. Fill the dish in 
this order ; put a tablespoonful of melted butter in each 
pie ; poiir in a little water ; cover w'ith crust, and bake. 

Eat cold. 

Sweet-Potato Pie (No. 2). »J* 

1 lb. mealy sweet potatoes. The firm yellow ones 

are best. 
•^ cup butter. 
I" " white sugar. 
1 tablespoonful cinnamon. 
1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

4 eggs — whites and yolks beaten sepai'ately. 
1 lemon, juice and rind, and glass of brandy. 

Parboil the potatoes, and grate them when quite cold. 
If grated hot, they are sticky sjid heavy. Cream the but- 
ter and sugar ; add the yolk, the spice, and lemon ; beat 
the potato in by degrees and until all is light ; then the 
brandy, and stir in the whites. Bake in dishes lined with 
good paste — without cover. 

You may make a pudding of this by baking in a deep 
dish — well buttered, without paste. Cool before eating. 

Irish-Potato Pie {or Pudding). »j« 

1 lb. mashed potato, rubbed through a cullender. 

•^ lb. butter — creamed with the sugar. 

G eggs — whites and yolks se^jarately. 

1 lemon — squeezed into the potato while hot. 



PIES. 361 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg, and same of mace. 

2 cups white sugar. 

Mix as you do sweet potato pudding, and bake in open 
eliells of paste. To be eaten cold. 

Lemon Pie {or Transjyarent Pudding). ^^ 

I lb. butter. 

1 lb. sugar. 

6 eggs — whites and yolks separately. 

Juice of one lemon. 

Grated rind of two. 

1 nutmeg. 

■|- glass brandy. 

Cream butter and sugar, beat in the yolks, the lemon, 
spice, and brandy, stirring in the whites at the last. 

Bake in pie-crust, open. 

You may, if you wish to have these very nice, beat up 
the whites of but four eggs in the mixture, and whip the 
whites of four more into a meringue with four tablespoon- 
fuls sugar and a little lemon-juice, to spread over the top 
of each pie. 

Eat cold. They are very nice baked^in pattypans. 

Lemox Pie {Ko. 2). 

1 apple, chopped fine. 

1 egg. 

1 lemon, chop the inside very fine and grate the rind. 

1 cup Fugar. 

Butter, the size of a walniit. 

Tliis is just enough for one pie. Take the thick white 
rind off the lemon before you chop it. Take out the seeds 
carefully. 

16 



3G2 COMMON SENSE. 

Lemon Cream Pie. t^ 

1 teacup powdered sugar. 

1 tableapoonful butter. 

1 egg. 

1 lemon — juice and grated rind, removing the seeds with 

care. 
1 teacupful boiling water. 
1 tablespoonful corn-starcli, dissolved in cold water. 

Stir the corn-starch into the water, cream the butter 
and sugar, and pour over them the hot mixture. When 
qtiite cool, add lemon and the beaten egg. Take the inner 
rind off the lemon and mince very small. 

Bake in open shell. 

Lemon Pie {JVo. 3). 

3 eggs. 

1 great spoonful butter. 

|- cxip white sugar. 

Juice and grated peel of lemon. 

Bake in open shells of paste. 

Cream the sugar and butter, stir in the beaten yolks 
and the lemon, and bake. Beat the wldtes to a stiff me- 
ringue with three tablespoonfuls powdered sugar and a lit- 
tle rose-water. When the pies are done, take from the 
oven just long enough to spread the meringue over the top, 
and set back for three minutes. This mixture is enough 
for two small, or one good-sized pie. 

Eat cold. 

Orange Pie. 
3 eggs. 

I" cup of white sugar. 
2 tablespoonfuls butter. 



PIES. 363 

1 orange— juice and half the grated rind. 
^ lemon — -juice and grated peel. 
Nutmeg to taste. 

Cream the butter and siigar, beating in the orange and 
lemon until very light ; add the beaten yolks, fill two jiastry 
shells and bake. Beat the whites stift'with two tablespoonfuls 
powdered sugar, and when the pies are done, spread over 
them, returning to the oven for three or four minutes. 

Lemox Tart. 

1 cup sugar. 

2 lemons — all the juice, and a teaspoonful gi-ated peel, 
t teaspoonful corn-starch, dissolved in a little cold water, 
A dozen raisins stewed, cut in two and seeded. 

Beat up well, and bake with xipper and lower crust. 

Orange Tartlets. 

2 fine Havana oranges, juice of both, and grated peel of 

one. 
•f- cup of sugar — ^ cup if the oranges are very sweet. 
1 tablespoonful of butter. 
^ lemon — juice only, to wet 1 teaspoonful corn-starch. 

Beat all well together, and bake in tartlet shells without 
cover. 

Chocolate Tarts. 

4 eggs, whites and yolks. 

■^ cake of Baker's chocolate, grated. 

1 tablespoonfvd corn-starch dissolved in water. 

3 « milk. 

4 " white sugar. 

2 teaspoonfuls vanilla. 
1 saltspoonful salt. 



364 COMMON SENSE. 

t 

^ teaspoonful tdnuamon. 

1 " butter, melted. 

Rub the chocolate smooth in the milk and heat to boiling 
over the fire, then stir in the corn-starch. Stir five min- 
utes until well thickened, remove from the fire, and pour 
into a bowl. Beat oil the yolks and tlie whites of two 
eggs well with the sugar, and when the chocolate mixture 
is almost cold, put all together with the ilavoring, and stir 
until light. Bake in open shells of pastry. When done, 
cover with a meringue made of the whites of two eggs and 
two tablespoonfuls Of sugar flavored with a teaspoonful of 
lemon-juice. Eat cold. 

These are nice for tea, baked in pattypans. 

Cocoa-nut Pie {JVo. 1). 

^- lb. grated cocoa-nut. 

1^ " white sugar (powdered). 

6 oz. butter. 

5 eggs — the whites only. 

1 glass white wine. 

2 tablespoonfuls rose-water. 
1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

Cream the butter and sugar, and when well mixed, beat 
very light, with the wine and rose-water. Add the cocoa- 
nut with as little and as light beating as possible ; finally, 
whip in the stiffened whites of the eggs with a few skilful 
strokes, and bake at once in open shells. Eat cold, with 
powdered sugar sifted over them. 

These are very pretty and delightful pies. 

Cocoa-nut Pie (iVo. 2). 

1 lb. grated cocoa-nut. 
^ " butter. 



PIES. 365 

^ lb. powdered sugar. 

1 glass of brandy. 

2 teaspoonfuls lemon-juice. 

4 eggs — white and yolks separated. 
2 teaspoonfuls vanilla. 

Rub tlie butter and sugar together; beat light with thfl 
brandy and lemon-juice ; stir in the beaten yolks ; lastly the 
cocoa-nut and the M'hites, alternately. Bake in open shells. 

Eat cold, with powdered sugar sifted over it. 

Cocoa-nut Custard Pie. 

1 lb. cocoa-nut, grated, 
i " powdered sugar. 
1 quart milk, unskimmed. 
6 eggs beaten to a froth. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

2 teaspoonfuls vanilla or rose-water. 

Boil the milk, take it from the fire, and whip in grad- 
ually the beaten eggs. When nearly cold, season ; add the 
cocoa-nut, and pour into paste-shells. Do not boil the egg 
and milk together. Bake twenty minutes. 

Some put the custard quite raw into the pie-dishes, but 
the cocoa-nut is apt, in that case, to settle at the bottom. 

You may, however, pour the i*aw mixture into cups, 
and bake by setting in a pan of boiling water, stirring well 
once, as they begin to warm. This is cocoa-nut cup-cus- 
tard, and is much liked. 

Chocolate Custard-pie. 

1 quarter-cake of Baker's chocolate, grated, 

1 pint boiling water. 

6 eggs. 

1 quart milk. 



366 COilMON SENSE. 

^ Clip white sugar, 
2 teaspoonfuls vanilla. 

Dissolve the cliocolate in a very little milk, stir into 
the boiling water, and boil three minutes. When nearly 
cold, beat up with this the yolks of all the eggs and the 
whites of three. Stir this mixture into the milk, season, 
and pour into shells of good paste. When the custard is 
*' set " — but not more than half done — spread over it the 
whites, whipped to a froth, with two tablespoo^uls sugar. 

You may bake these custards Avithout paste, in a pud- 
dJng-dish or cups set in boiling water. 

COKN-STARCH CuSTARD PlE, b^ 

6 eggs, 

3 pints milk, 

6 tablesj)oonfuls white sugar. 

2 " coi'n-starch. 

2 teaspoonfuls essence bitter almonds. 

Boil the milk, stir in the corn-starch wet in a little cold 
milk, and boil one minute. When nearly cold, stir in the 
sugar, the yolks of all the eggs, and the whites of two ; 
^iavor, and pour into your paste-shells. Whip the remain- 
ing whites to a meringue, with two tablespoonfuls white 
sugar and a teaspoonful of vanilla, and when the custard 
is just " set," draw your pies to the edge of the oven to 
spread this over them. Do it quickly, lest the custard fall 
by exposure to the air. 

You may bake this as a pudding by omitting the pastry. 
Eat cold. 

If you have not corn-starch, substitute arrow-root oi 
rice-flour. 



PIES. 367 

Custard Pie. 
•4 eggs. 

1 quart of milk. 
4 tablespooufuls white sugar. 
Flavor witli vauilla or other essence. 

Beat the yolks and sugar light, and mix with the milk 
flavor, whip in the whites, wliich should be already a stiff 
froth, mix well, and pour into shells. Orate nutmeg upon 
the top. 

Bake this as cup-custard, or a custard pudding, in cupa 
or a deep dish set in a pan of boiling water. 

Peach Pie. »{« 

Peel, stone, and slice the peaches. Line a pie-plate 
with a good crust, and lay in your fruit, spi'inlding siigar 
liberally over them in proportion to their sweetness. Very 
ripe peaches require comparatively little. Allow three 
peach-kernels, chopped fine, to each pie ; pour in a very 
little water, and bake with an upper crust, or with cross- 
bars of paste across the top. 

Some simply pare the peaches and put in whole, pack- 
ing them well, and sweetening freely. In this case they 
should be covered entirely with crust. 

For one of the most delightful pies that can be made of 
any fruit, look for apple meringue pie, and substitute peach- 
es. I ca7i peaches expressly to have peach mei-ingues in 
winter-time. 

Cherky Pie. 

Line the dish with a good crust, and fill with ripe cher- 
ries, regulating the quantity of sugar you scatter over tliem 
by their sweetness. Cover and bake. 

Eat cold, with wliite sugar sifted over the top. 



363 common sense. 

Blackberry, Raspberry, and Plu3i Pies 

Are made in the same manner. 

Currant and Raspberry Tart. ^J* 

To thi-ee cups of currants allow one of raspberries. Mis 
well together before you fill the crust, and sweeten abun- 
dantly. Cover with crust and bake. 

Eat cold, Vi'ith white sugar sifted over it. 

Currant Tart 

Is made as above, Avith more sugar. The most common 
fault of currant pie is extreme sourness. Small fruits 
should be looked over cai-efully before they are cooked. 
Currants are troublesome, but they must nevertheless be 
looked after wai'ily on account of their extreme stem- 
miness. 

Green Gooseberry Tart. »|«i 

Top and tail the goosebei'ries. Put into a porcelain ket- 
tle with enough water to prevent burning, and stew slowly 
until they break. Take them off, sweeten loell, and set aside 
to cool. When cold pour into pastry shells, and bake with 
a top crust of pviff-paste. Brush all over with beaten egg 
while hot, set back in the oven to glaze for three minutes. 

Eat cold. 

Ripe Gooseberry Pie. 

Top and tail the berries. Line your dish with crust, 
and fill with berries, strewiug white svigar among them. 
Cover and bake. 

Damson Tart. 

Pick over the fruit, put in a dish lined with pastry, sweeten 
very freely, cover and bake. Brush with beaten egg when 
done, and return to the oven for a few minutes to glaze. 



PIES. 309 

Cranberry Tart. 

Wash and pick over the berries. Put into a porcelain 
saucepan with a very little water, and simmer until thejl 
burst open and become soft. Run thi'ough a cullender to 
remove the bkins, and sweeten to taste. Bake in pastry- 
shells, with a cross-bar of pasti-y over the top. 

Strawberry Pie. 

Cap and pick over the berries, arrange in layers, be- 
sprinkle with a good coating of sugar, in a shell of pastry. 
Fill it very full, as strawbei'ries shi-ink ver) much in cook- 
ing. Cover with crust and bake. 

Huckleberry pie is made in the same way. 

Cream Raspberry Tart. »^ 

Line a dish with paste and fill with raspberries, made 
very sweet with powdered sugai*. Cover with paste, but do 
not pinch it down at the edges. When done, lift the top 
crust, which should be thicker than usual, and pour upon 
the fruit the following mixture : — 

1 small cup of milk — half cream, if you can get it, heated 
to boiling. 

Whites of two eggs, beaten light and stirred into the 
boiling milk. 

1 tablespoonful white sugar. 

^ teaspooiiful corn-stai-ch wet in cold milk. 

Boil these ingi-edients three mmutes ; let them get per- 
fectly cold before you put them into the tart. Replace the 
top crust, and set the pie aside to cool. Sprinkle sugar over 
the top before serving. 

You make strawberry cream tart in the same manner. 
16* 



370 COMMON SENSE. 

EnuBARB Tart. {Open.) 

Skin tlie stalks with care, cut into small pieces ; put into 
a saucepan witli very little water, and stew slowly until 
soft. Sweeten while hot, but do not cook the sugar with 
the fruit. It injures the flavor, by making it taste like pre- 
serves. Have reacly some freshlj-baked shells. Fill iip 
with the fruit and they are ready to serve. 

Or- ^ 
You may, after sweetening the stewed rhubarb, stir in a 
lump of butter the size of a hickory -nut for each pie, also a 
well-beaten egg for each, and bake in pastry. Lay cross- 
bars of paste over the top. 

Rhubarb Pie. {Covered.) 

Skin the stalks, cut in lengths of half an inch ; strew 
lavishly with sugar, and fill the crusts with the raw fruit. 
Some scatter seedless raisins among the rhubarb. Cover, 
and bake nearly tliree-quarters of an hour. Brush with 
egg while hot, and return to the oven to glaze. 

Eat cold, as you do all fruit-pies. 



SERVANTS. 

Some years ago — more tlian I care to count over — I 
read a lively little book entitled, " The Greatest Plague of 
Life." I have forgotten who wrote it, if I ever knew. It 
was in the form of an avitobiography ; the heroine called 
hei'self, with an amusing aftectation of disgiiise, " Mrs. 
S-k-n-s-t-n," and it was illustrated by George Cruikshank. 
I read it aloud in my home-circle, and many a hearty laiigh 
we had over the poor lady's perplexities and calamities. 

Regarding the history as a clever burlesque, I suffered 



SEEVAKTS. 3T1 

no Appreciable di-aiiglit upon ray syinpalhies iiudl t'ui\Q ;uu' 
experience bronglit me in contact with so many who echoed 
fter plaint, that I could not but recur, now and then, with a 
half-sad smile, to her sufferings under the rule of Norah, 
who chased her up-stairs with a carving-knife ; with Mary, 
who drank up the cherry -brandy, filled the bottle with cold 
weak tea, and kept her pitying employers np all night to 
pull her through an epileptic fit ; with John, who never an- 
swered the parlor bell " unless they persewered ; " whose 
stomach could not bear cold meat at dinner, but rallied 
bravely under a couple of pounds at supper. There waa 
one nursery-maid wlio whipped Mrs. S-k-n-s-t-n's child, and 
another who upset the pei'ambulator in the park, and, too 
much absorbed in the suit of a whiskered Guardsman to 
note what had happened, went on dragging the carriage 
upon its side until the baby's cheek was cruelly scarified by 
the gravel — besides a host of other Mnworthies set for the 
distress of Mrs. S-k-n-s-t-n's mind, body, and estate. 

" Douglas Jerrold wrote that book," interrupted a friend 
at my elbow. " And, aprojyos de bottes, have you seen 
Punch's recent article, * Servantgalism ; or, What Shall 
Be Done With the Missusses ? ' " 

" The malady in America must bear another name," re- 
marks a lady, gayly. *' We have no servants — at least iu 
this region. My cook is forty-seven yeai's old, and my 
chambermaid a widow, who has buried two children ; yet 
they would be highly affronted were I to speak of them ex- 
cept as ' girls.' It is a generic term that belongs to the 
class 'who live out,' from sixteen up to sixty. I had a 
lesson on this lieHrl. not a month since. My laundress, 
who has lived with me six years, was thanking me for a ser- 
vice I had done her brother. 

" ' I'll never forget you tor it, mem,' she sobbed. ' I'll 
bless you for it, on me knees, night and morning.' 



372 COMISION SENSE. 

" I am glad I have been able to help your fi-iencis, 
Katy," I said. " You liave been a faithful servant to 
me " 

She cut my sentence in the middle by walking out of 
the room — I supposed, to conceal her emotions. I v/as un- 
deceived, five minutes later, when her angry tones reached 
me from the kitchen, the door of which she had left open. 

" I'll never believe a person has a good heart, or de- 
serves to be called a Chiistian, who na,mes an honest, 
respectable girl who tries to do her duty, a servant ! ' A 
faithful servant ! ' says she ;- ' as if she was a queen and me- 
self a beggar ! ' " 

" What did you say to the ungrateful wretch ? " asks a 
listener, indignantly. 

" Nothing. I went quietly out of hearing, reminded, 
for the luxndredth time, of Solomon's warning, ' Take no 
heed unto all words that are spoken, lest thou hear thy 
servant curse thee.' I recalled, too, the saying of a 
mightier than the Royal Preacher : ' Whosoever will be 
greatest among you, let him be your servant? " 

" I thought you were one of the favored few who had 
no trouble with them," says another housekeeper, sighingly. 
" There is real comfort, — excuse me, my dear Mrs. Ster- 
ling, — but it is refreshing to a wearied soul to know that 
you have felt some of our tribulations. It seems to me, at 
times, that there is no other affliction worthy the name 
when compared with what we endure from the ' Necessary 
Evil.' I have tried all sorts — the representatives from 
every nation under heaven, I verily believe — and tliey are 
all alike ! They will wear me into an untimely grave yet.'' 

" I wouldn't let them, my dear Mai-tha," replies Mrs. 
Sterling, with her sunny smile. " If evils, they are siu'cly 
minor afflictions. And, after all, I imagine ' they ' are a 
good deal like the rest of man and womankind — pretty 



BEEVANTS. O i d 

much as yoix choose to take them. The triith is, there is 
no justice in wholesale denunciation of any class. You 
recollect the Western orator's truism, ' Human nature, 
Mr. President, nine cases out of ten, is human nature.' 
When I consider the influences under wliich a majority of 
our servants have been reared — ignorance, poverty, super- 
stition, often evil example in their homes — my wonder is, 
not at the worthlessness of some, but that so many are 
virtuous, honest, and orderly. You will allow that, as a 
general thing, they are quite as industrious as their mis- 
tresses, and control their temjjers almost as well. And we 
make so many mistakes in our dealings with them ! " 

My old friend does not often lecture, but she has some- 
thing to say now, and forgets herself in her subject. 

" We err so grievously in our management, that a sense 
of our failures should teach us charity. Do we understand, 
ourselves, what is the proper place of a hired ' help ' in our 
families ? If it is the disposition of Mrs. Shoddy to tram- 
ple upon them as sovilless machines, Mrs. Kindly makes a 
sort of elder daughter of her maid ; indulges, consults, 
and confides in her, and wonders, by-and-by, to find herself 
under Abigail's thumb — her husband and children subject 
to the caprices of a pampered menial. I never hear a lady 
say of a valued domestic, ' I could not get along without 
her,' without anticipating as a certainty the hour when 
she shall announce, ' There is such a thing as keeping a 
servant too long.' The crisis comes, then, to Mrs. Kindly. 
In a moment of desperation she frees her neck from the 
yoke. Abigail packs her six trunks, having entered Mrs. 
Kindly's service, seven years before, with her worldly all 
done up in a newspaper, shakes the dust off the neat Bal- 
moral boots which have replaced her brogans, against the 
heartless tyrant who sits crying, in her own room up-stairs, 
over thoughts of how Abigail has been so clean, quick, and 



374 coamoN SE^■SE. 

devoted to her interests ; how she has nursed her through 
a long and dangerous ilhiess, and had the charge of Emma 
and Bobby from their birth. She has prepared a handsome 
present for her in memory of all this, and is hurt more 
tlian by anything else when she learns that the girl has 
taken her fmal departure without even kissing the baby. 

" It is not strange that the deceived mistress shovild, fi'om 
that day, write down Abigail a monster of ingratitude, and 
forget the faithful service of years in the smart of wounded 
feeling; when the truth is that she did the maid more 
injury by injudicious petting, than the latter coiild do her 
mistress had she absconded with all the plate in the house. 
She has, as might have been expected, proved Abigail's un- 
fitness to be her confidante and co-adviser ; but, at the same 
time, she has filled her brain with notions of her supei'ioi-- 
ity to her fellow-servants, her heart wit£ burnings for the 
higher station she can never occupj^. 

" I speak feelingly iipon this subject," continues Mrs. 
Sterling, with a laugh ; " for I was once led into this 
very mistake myself, by the attractive qualities of a young 
woman who lived with me nine years as seamstress and 
chambermaid. She was so even-tempered, so sensible, in- 
dustrious, and respectful, that she gained upon the esteem 
of us all. One day, whiYe we sat together at work, I told 
her of some family changes in prospect, prefacing the com- 
munication by the remark, ' I want to speak to you of 
something, Eliza, which you must not mention to any one 
else at present. The interests of an employer and a ser- 
vant should bo the same.' 

" Then, very foolishly, I opened up my mind freely on 
the subject that engaged it. She answered modestly, but 
intelligently, entering into my plans with such cordial in- 
terest and pledges of cooperation, that I went to prepare 
for a walk, feeling really strengthened and cheered by the 



SERYAJ^TS. 6 i .1 

talk. At the front dcor I was met by a letter requiring au 
immediate reply. Returning to my chamber to lay off" my 
hat and shawl, I heard Eliza talking loudly and gleefully, 
in the adjoining sewiiig-room, Avith the cook, whom she 
must have called up-stairs through the speaking-tube. You 
cannot imagine, nor I describe, my sensations at listening, 
against my will, to an exaggerated account of the inter- 
view which had jvist taken place, Not only my language, 
but my tones were mimicked with great gusto and much 
laughter by my late confidante — the phrase ' The interests 
of the employer and the servant should be the same ' 
occurring ag£tin and again, and forming, apparently, the 
cream of the joke. I was very angry. But for the rule 
adopted early in my married life, never to reprove a ser- 
vant when out of humor, I should instantly have ordered 
the treacherous creatvire — as I named her — from the house. 
I sat down instead, to cool off and to think. With reflec- 
tion, common sense rallied to my aid. 

" ' The girl does well enough in her place, which is that 
of a hired chambermaid and seamstress,' said this monitor. 
* She knew her position, and would have kept it, but for 
your folly in dragging her up to temporary equality with 
yourself. You made yoiu'self i-idiculous, and she was 
slirewd enough to see it. Take the lesson to heart ; write 
it out in full for future guidance, and keep your own 
counsel.' 

" Eliza never suspected my discovery. She remained 
with me until her marriage a year afterward, and we parted 
upon good terms." 

I have quoted from my friend at length, because I honor 
her excellent j udgment and mature experience, and because 
I agree so fully with her touching the evil of so-called con- 
fidential servants. The principle of acknowledged favoiit- 
ism is ruinous to domestic comfort, let who may be the 



870 COMMOX SENSE. 

object tlius distinguished. Rely upon ifc, my dear lady, at 
least one-third of liome-wraugles and social scandal arises 
from this cause. Be assured, also, that if you do not per- 
ceive the impropriety of lowering yourself to the level of 
your subordinates, tliey will, and gauge their behavior ac- 
coi'dingly. The connection is an unnatural one, and, like 
all others of the kind, must terminate disastrously in time. 
Then the discarded favorite, aggrieved and exaspo-ated, 
leaves your house to tattle in the ears of some otlier indis- 
creet mistress, of your sayings and doings. Shov.^ your 
servant that you respect yourself and her too truly to for- 
get what is due to both. Be kind, pleasant, always reason- 
able and attentive to her needs, willing to hearken to and 
meet any lawful request. - Make her comfortable, and, so 
far as you can, happy. 

Excuse one more quotation from Mi'S. Sterling, whom, 
when I was much younger than I am now, I consulted 
with regard to the just medium between familiarity and 
austerity. 

" Remember they are human beings, and treat them as 
such," she said. " Not that you are likely to reap a large 
reward in their gratitude, bi;t because it is right, and be- 
cause you find no exceptions to the practice of the Golden 
Rule laid down in the Bible. Be faithful in your obedience 
to the law of kindness. With the return tide you have 
nothing to do. This is a safe and straight ]>-ith. I believe 
it to be also the smoothest. You will be better and more 
cheerfully served than your neighbor, who, recognizing in 
every hireling a natural enemy, is always on the defensive." 

I have found the most serious obstacle to a comfortable 
pursuance of her safe path, to lie in this same prejudice — 
rooted by centixries of misx;nderstandings and caste-wars — 
the belief of necessary antagonism between emploj^ers and 
employed. Mrs. Sterling's Eliza only expressed the pre- 



SERVANTS. 6 i 7 

vailing sentiment of her class, when she ridiculed her 
mistress' jiroposition that their interests ought to be identi- 
cal. I have failed so often and so signally in the endeavoi 
to impress the merits of this policy upon domestics, that I 
rarely attempt it now. There is always a suspicion- -more 
or less ap])arent — that you have a single eye to self-interest 
in all your regulations and counsels. " What does she 
hope to gain V What am I in danger of losing ? " are the 
queries that invariably present themselves to the subordi- 
nate's mind. The arguments by which your plans are sup- 
ported are thrown away upon ignorant and illogical listen- 
ers — your array of facts totally disbelieved. Your auditor 
does not say this, but in divers and ingenious ways she 
contrives to let you know that she is not so silly as to be 
imposed upon by the specious array of evidence. 

For how much of this are mistresses responsible ? Has 
this creed of distrust been learned by experience of injustice 
or exaction, or is it one of the popular prejudices, which 
are harder to overthrow than sound and well-established 
principle ? Of one tiling I am certain : Mistresses and 
maids would more speedily come to a right understanding 
of oneness of interest but for the influence exerted over the 
former by Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Hobinson, and Mrs. Brown, 
who don't allow this, and couldn't think of that, and never 
heard of the other privilege or inmiiuiity being granted to 
servants. Before they would yield such a point, or submit 
to one syllable of dictation, they would do all their own 
work, etc., etc. Poor Mrs. Pliable, listening dumbly and 
meekly, goes home with a low-spirited sense of her own 
pusillanimity upon her, and tries to assert her authority 
and redeem past faults by a sudden tightening of the reina 
that results in a runaway and general smash-up. 

Cannot we remember — you and I — my dear reader, that 
we may sometimes be as nearly right as those who talk mora 



378 COMMON SEKSE. 

loudly and strongly than we ■npon domestic economy , laying 
down rules we never thouglit of suggesting; splitting into 
ninths a liair our sliort-sighted eyes cannot make out when 
whole, and annihilating our timid objections with a lordly 
" J^ always do so," which is eqvial to a decree of infallibility r 
Cannot we make uj) our minds, once and for all, to be a law 
iinto ourselves in all matters pertaining to our hoxiseholds ? 
Mrs. Jones' rule may be good for her ; Mrs. Robinson's 
better than any other in her particular case, and JMrs. 
Brown's best of all for one in her peculiar circumstances ; 
yet any one or all of them be unsuitable for our use. 

Avoid talking about your domestic affairs with people 
whose gossip on these topics is incessant. You are angry 
when a whiif of some such discussion as enlightened Mrs. 
Sterling, with regard to our mistake, is wafted to you 
through the dumb-waiter or register, an accident that will 
occur while the tones of the plaintiffs are loud and untrain- 
ed by education or policy. It is mean and unkind — traitor- 
ous, in fact, you say, for them so to misrepresent and revile 
you — after all the kindness you have showed to them, too ! 
Bridget, Chloe, or Gretchen, passing the parlor-door and 
catching the sound of her name as roughly handled, may 
have her own sensations, and draw her own inferences — ' 
being human like yourself. It is tiresome and vulgar, this 
everlasting exchange of experiences about " my girl," and 
" your girl," and everybody else's " girl." It is time sensi- 
ble women ceased, in this respect, to imitate the fashion of 
the class they censure, and put down the bootless tattle 
with a strong will. Order your household, then, so far 
aright as you can by the help of common sense and gi-ace 
from on high, and let Mesdames Jones, Eobinson, and 
Brown look to the ways of their own, and expend their 
surplus energies upon their neighbors' concerns — counting 
you out. 



SERVANTS. H70 

(I believe that is slang, but let it stand !) 

These worthy and fussy housewives act upon the sup- 
position that all " girls " are cast in the same mould. Being 
human (do not let us forget that !), the probability is, that 
there are varieties of the species. 

But, if the mistresses are led by their associates, tha 
" girl's " "acquaintances" sway her yet more powerfully. 
Every conscientious, well-meaning housewife knows what a 
brake is this informal, but terrible " Union " upon her en- 
deavors to improve and really benefit those under her di- 
rection. I have been amazed and disgusted at the tyranny 
exercised by this irres^jonsible body over the best servants 
I have ever seen. 

" We would be hooted at, ma'am, if we didn't give in 
to them," said one, when I represented how senseless and 
almost suicidal was the covu-se recommended by these evil 
advisers. " There's not a girl in town would speak to us 
if we didn't join in with the rest. It's like a strike, you 
see — awful upon them as holds back." 

Do not, then, my discouraged fellow-laborer, imagine 
that I am ignorant of your trials, your doubts, your dis- 
heartening experiences. If I disagree with Mrs. S-k-n-s-t-n 
and do not pronounce our servants to be the greatest plague 
of life, inclining rather to the belief that— always allow- 
ing for human nature and the drawbacks I have enumer- 
ated — good mistresses are apt to make good servants, it 
is in consequence of long and careful study and observa- 
tion of the practical working of Mrs. Sterling's rule. Like 
begets like. Pleasant words are more likely to be an- 
swered by pleasant than are tart or hasty ones. If you 
would have your servants respectful to you, be respectful 
to them. The best way to teach tl\em politeness is by 
example. It should not cost 3'ou an effort to say, " Thank 
you," or "If you please." The habit exerts an unconscious 



380 COMMON SENSE. 

refining influence upon them, and you dignify instead of 
degr-ading your ladyhood by being pitiful and courteoua 
to all. If yovi can only maintain your position by haugh- 
tiness and chilling disregard of the feelings of inferiors, 
your rank is false, or you unfit to hold it. 

To begin, then : Be mistress of yourself. Amid all 
your temptations to angry or sarcastic speech (and how 
many and how strong these are, you and I know), curb 
yourself with the recollection that it is despicable, no less 
than useless, to say cutting things to one who* has no right 
to retoi-t upon you in kind. 

" Ma','' says Miss Aurelia in Miss Sedg^^^.ck's admirable 
story, " Live and let Live " — " how can you let your help be 
so saucy to you '? " 

Master Jiilius, who was standing by, took a different 
view of the matter. 

" If Ma' doesn't want her help to be sarcy to her," he 
said, " she hadn't ought to be sarcy to them." 

Teach your children the like forms of kindly speech 
and habits of consideration for the comfort and happiness 
of your domestics, checking with equal promptness undvie 
freedom and the arrogance of station. It is as graceful to 
bend as it is mean to grovel. 

Learn not to see everything,- and, so soon as you can, 
put far from you the delusive hojie that anybody else — ■ 
uidess it be dear old John — will ever serve you as well 
as you would serve yourself This failure is attributable 
to some one of the nine-tenths we spoke of just nov,-. She 
is a prudent housekeeper who can wink at trifling blemishes 
without eff'ort or parade. There is one text which has 
come into my troubled mind hundreds of times on such 
occasions, calming perturbation into solemnity, and bring- 
ing, I hope, charity Avith himiility : — 



SEEVAIfTS. 881 

" If 21iOu, Lord, sliouldst mark imqnities, O Lord, 
who shall stand ? " 

But if your hold of the rein be gentle, let it also be 
fii'm. Never forget that the house is yours, and that you 
— not hii-elings — ai-e responsible for the disposition of the 
stores purchased with John's money. 

" I was much amused the other day," said an easy- 
temjiered lady to me, " at a talk that passed under my win- 
dow between my new cook and one of her visitors, 

" * And how are ye gitting along ? ' nsked the guest. 

" ' Oh ! pretty well-ish, now,' was the reply. ' I waa 
a-feard, when I first come, that slie would bother me a- trot- 
ting down into the kitchen so constant. Bvit I give her a 
hint as how that wasn't the trick of a raal lady, and she's 
kep' out nicely sence then. You've got to stand vip for 
your own rights in this wurrld, or you'll be ti'od upon.' " 

Kow, it would be throwing away words to reason with 
a woman like that cook, or a mistress might show that in 
no other department of labor would such a principle be 
tolerated — that from the Secretary of State down to the 
BcaA'enger who empties your ash-pan, every employe who 
draws wages has an overlooker, to whom he is accountable 
for the manner in which his work is done and his money 
eai'ned ; and that the fact that she is an ignorant, high- 
tempered woman is no just cause of exemption. Yet in 
how many families is this point tacitly yielded, and the 
mistress admitted upon sufferance to her own kitchen — the 
room fui-nished with her monej', and in which she hardly 
dare touch or look at the articles intended for the consump- 
tion of her own family? 

One often liears such remarks as, "It isn't every girl 
who will stand having the mistress popping in and out 
while she is at work." When, in any other situation, the 
very fact of this unwillingness to have the owner of the 



SS3 COI^mON SENSE. 

materials used in that work present, would be stiong pre- 
sumptive proof of negligence or dishonesty. The princi- 
ple is pernicious from beginning to end, and should not be 
tolerated for an instant. 

It gives me ])leasure to state here, that I know nothing 
personally of this curious reversal of the rights of employer 
and domestic. I am inclined to believe, if one-half I hear 
of other housewives' trials be ti'ue, that I have been highly 
favored among American women. My authority in the 
kitchen, as in other parts of the household, has never been 
disputed — in my hearing or presence, that is. I have 
always met with a cheerful reception below-stairs when I 
appeared there to direct or share the labors of my cooks ; 
have found them willing to undertake new dishes, and 
ready to learn my " way," however unlike it might be to 
their own. As a rule, also, — to which the exceptions have 
been few and very far between, — those employed by me 
have been cleanly, industrious, kind-hearted, and respect- 
ful ; patient under inconveniences, and attentive in sick- 
ness. I should not, therefore, do my duty, did I not lift 
my voice in a plea for charitable judgment, just and gen- 
ei'ous treatment of a class which, however faulty, have 
much to do and to endure. Mrs. Skinflint'3 grocer's ac- 
count may be less than yours, if you adopt this policy — 
Mrs. Sharp's coal-cellar be better dusted, and the paint in 
her attic scrubbed oftener ; but I believe, in the long run, 
you will be the most comfortable in body as in conscience. 
Your machinery will move with fewer jerks and less fric- 
tion. Your servants will remain with you longer, and be 
better-tempered while they stay, if you show that you ap' 
preciate the fact of a common humanity ; that you owe 
them duties you are resolved to fulfil dviring their sojourn 
under your roof, however mercenary may be their perform- 
ance of those devolving upon t\em. 



PUDDIKG3. 383 

Finally, clear sister, do not add to the real miseries of 
life by regarding the annoyance of a careless, slothful, or 
impertinent domestic as a real trouble. Class it with petty 
vexations which are yet curable as well as endurable, and 
live above it — a noble, beneficent existence in the love of 
your fellow-creatui-es and the fear of God — a life that can 
not sufler perceptible disturbance from such a contemptiblfc 
rootlet of bittei'ness as this. It is only the feeble, the 
ineflicient, or the indolent mistress whose peace of mind is 
dependent upon such casualties as a breeze, a hurricane, or 
a sudden vacancy in the department of the interior. 

Recollect, when the infliction is sharpest, that brier- 
pricks are disagreeable, but never serious, unless the blood 
be very impure. 

« 

PUDDINGS. 

I have, for convenience sake, classed among pies all 
preparations baked in crust in a pie-dish. Many of these, 
however, are called puddings, such as custards of various 
kinds, lemon, cocoa-nut, and orange puddings. The reader 
will have no trouble in finding the receipts for these, if she 
will bear the above remark in mind. 

Bailed Puddings. 

Beat your eggs very light — and, if you put in only one 
or two, Avhip white and yolk separately, beating the latter 
into the sugar before adding the whites. 

Fruit, rice, corn-starch, and bread puddings require a 
steady, moderate oven in baking. Custard and batter pud- 
dings should be put into the dish, and this into the even, 
the instant they are mixed, and baked quickly. N^o pud- 
ding, unless it be raised ^vith yeast, should be allowed to 



884 ' COJIMON SENSE. 

Btancl out of tlie oven after the ingredients are put togetter. 
Give one final hard stir just before it goes in, and be sure 
the mould is well greased. 

Apple Meringue Pudding. 

1 pint stewed apples, 

3 eggs — white and yolk separate. 

\ cup white sugar, and one teaspoonful butter. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg and cinnamon mixed. 

1 " essence bitter almond (for the meringue). 

Sweeten and spice, and, while the aj^j^le is still very 
hot, stir in. the butter, and, a little at a time, the yolks. 
Beat all light, pour into a buttered dish, and bake ten min- 
utes. Cover, without drawing from the oven, with a me- 
ringue made of the beaten whites, two tablespoonfuls white 
sugar, and the bitter almond seasoning. Sj)read smoothly 
and quickly, close the oven again, and bi'own very slightly. 

Eat cold, with white sugar sifted over the toj), and send 
arovind cream to j^our over it instead of sauce. 

Baked Apple Pudding. 

6 large firm pippins (grated). 

3 tablespoonfuls butter. 
■^ cup sugar. 

4 eggs — whites and yolks separate. 
Juice of one lemon, and half the peel. 

Beat butter and sugar to a cream, stir in the yolks, the 
lemon, the grated apple, lastly the whites. * Grate nutmeg 
over the top, and bake until nicely bro^vned. 

Eat cold with cream. 



baked puddings. 385 

Sweet Apple Pudding. »J« 

1 quart milk. 

4 eggs. 

3 cups chopped apple. 

1 lemon — all the juice and half the rind. 
Nutmeg and cinnamon, 

^ teaspoonful of soda dissolved in a little vinegar. 
Flour for a stiff batter. 

Beat the yolks very light, add the milk, seasoning, and 
flour. Stir hard five minutes, and beat in the ai:)ple, then 
the whites, lastly the soda, well mixed in. 

Bake in two square shallow 2:)ans one hour, and eat 
hot, with sweet sauce. Much of the success of this pudding 
depends upon the mixing — almost as much upon the baking. 
Cover with paper when half done, to prevent hardening. 

Pippin Pudding. ►J* 

8 fine pippins, pared, cored, and sliced, breaking them 

as little as possible. 
■^ cup very fine bread-crumbs. 

2 teaspoonfuls butter — melted. 

5 eggs — whites and yolks separate, 
f cup sugar. 

1 oz. citron, shred finely. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg, and a dozen whole cloves. 

1 c\ip milk or cream. 

Soak the bread-crumbs in the milk, cream the butter 
and sugar, and beat into this the yolks. Next, adding the 
milk and soaked bi-ead, stir until very smooth and light. 
Put in the nutmeg and citron, and whip in the whites 
lightly. Butter a deep dish, and put in your sliced apple, 
sprinkling each piece well with sugar-, and scattering the 
17 



386 



COMMON SENSE. 



cloves among them. Pour tlie custard you have prepared 
over them, and bake three-quarters of an hour. 
Sift powdered sugar over the top, and eat cold. 

Brown Betty, *J« 

1 cup bread-crumbs. 

2 cups chopped apples — tart. 
•§■ cup sugar. 

1 teaspoonful cinnamon. 

2 tablespoonfuls butter cut into small bits. 

Butter a deep dish, and pvit a layer of the chopped 
apple at the bottom ; sj)rinkle with sugar, a few bits of 
butter, and cinnamon ; cover with bread-crumbs ; then more 
apple. Proceed in this order ixntil the dish is full, having 
a layer of crumbs at top. Cover closely, and steam three- 
quai'ters of an hour in a moderate oven ; then uncover and 
brown quickly. 

Eat warm with sugar and cream, or sweet sauce. 

This is a homely but very good pudding, especially for 
the cliildren's table. Serve in the dish in which it is 
baked. 

Apple Batter Pudding. 

1 pint rich milk. 

2 cups flour, 
4 eggs. 

1 teasjioonful salt. 

^ " soda, dissolved in hot water. 

Peel and core eight apples carefully, and range them close- 
ly together in a deep disli. Beat the batter very light and 
pour over them. Unless the ajiples are very ripe and sweet 
(for tart apples), fill the centre of each with white sugar. 
Bake an hour, and eat hot with sweet sauce. 



baked puddings. 387 

Apple axd Plum Pudding. 

|- lb. fine tart apples, pared and cliojpped. 

^ " sugar. 

f « flour. 

■^ " beef suet, x-ubbed fine. 

f " raisins, seeded and chopped. 

6 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg and the same powdered cloves. 

1 « salt. 

^ glass brown sherry and the same of brandy. 

Stir the beaten yolks and sugar veiy light, add the suet 
and apples with the spice ; then the raisins, Avell dredged 
with flour ; next the flour, and, when this is all in, the 
liquor; lastly, the whites beaten ve7y stiff. Bake in two 
buttered moulds, in a moderate oven, an hoiu* and a half at 
least. Eat hot, with sauce. 

You may boil this pvidding if you like. 

Apple and Tapioca Pudding, i^ 

1 teacupful tapioca. 

6 apples — juicy and well-flavored pippins — pared and 

cored. 
1 quart water. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 

Cover the tapioca with three cups of lukewarm water, 
and s>et it in a tolerably warm jjlace to soak five or six 
hours, stirring now and then. Pack your apples in a deep 
dish, adding a cup of lukewarm water ; cover closely and 
steam in a moderate oven until soft all through, turning 
them as they cook at bottom. If the dish is more than a 
third full of liquid, turn some of it out before you pour the 
soaked tapioca over all. Unless your apples are very sweet, 



388 COiOION SENSE. 

fill tlie centre ■wn.tli sugar and stick a clove in eacli, just bo 
fore you cover with the tapioca. Indeed, I always do this, 
It softens the hard acid of the fruit. Bake, after the tapio< 
ca goes in, one hour. 

Eat warm, with sweet hard sauce. 

Baked Apple Dumplings. ^ 

1 quart flour. 

2 tablespoonfuls lard — or half butter is better. 
2 cups of milk. 

1 teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 

2 " cream-tartar sifted into the dry flour. 
1 saltspoonful salt. 

Chop the shox'tening into the flour after you have sifted 
this and the cream-tartar together ; put in the soda and wet 
up quickly — just stiff" enough to roll into a paste less than 
half an inch thick. Cut into squares, and lay in the centre 
of each a juicy, tare apple, pared and cored ; bring the cor- 
ners of the square neatly together and pinch them slightly. 
Lay in a buttered baking-pan, the joined edges downward, 
and bake to a fine brown. When done, brush over with 
beaten egg, and set ba.ck in the oven to glaze for two or 
three minutes. Sift powdered sugar over them, and eat hot 
with rich sweet sauce. 

I greatly prefer the above simple crust for all kinds of 
dumplings, to the rich i:faste which becomes heavy so soon 
as it begins to cool. It is also more quickly and easily made, 
and far more wholesome than pastry. 

Tapioca Pudding. *J< 

1 cup tapioca. 
1 quart milk. 
5 eggs — whites and yolks beaten separately. 



BAKED rUDDINGS. 38& 

2 tablespoonfuls biitter, melted. 
2 " sugar. 

Soak tlie tapioca, in enough cold water to cover it, two 
hours ; drain off the water, if it be not all absorbed ; soak 
two hours longer in the milk, which should be slightly 
warmed. When the tapioca is quite soft, beat the svigai 
and butter together ; add the yolks, the milk and' tapioca, 
lastly the whites. Stir very well, and bake in a buttea:ed 
dish. Eat warm with sweet sauce. 

You may make a sago pudding in the same way. 

Corn-Starch Pudding. *^ 

4 tablespoonfuls corn-starch. 

1 quart milk. 

4 eggs — whites and yolks separate. 

^ cup sugar. 

Nutmeg and cinnamon. 

1 tablespoonful butter. 

Dissolve the corn-starch in a little cold milk, and having 
heated the rest of the milk to boiling, stir this in and boil 
three minutes, stirring all the time. Remove from the fire, 
and while still very hot, put in the butter. Set away until 
cold ; beat the eggs very light — the sugar and seasoning with 
them, and stir into the corn-starch, beating thoroughly to a 
smooth custard. Turn into a buttered dish, and bake hall 
an hour. Eat cold, with powdered sugar sifted over it. 

Corn-Starch Meringue. *^ 

4 eggs. 

1 quart of milk. 

I cup sugar. 

4 teaspoonfuls corn-starch. 

^ cup fruit-jelly or jam. 



390 COMMON SENSE. 

Heat tlie milk to boiling, and stir in the corn-starch, 
"which has previously been dissolved in a little cold milk. 
Boil fifteen minutes, stirring all the vv'hile. Kemove from 
the fire, and while still hot, add gradually the yolks of the 
eggs beaten vip with the sugar and seasoned with vanilla, 
lemon, or bitter almond. Pour this into a buttered pud- 
ding-dish and bake fifteen minutes, or until the custard 
begins to " set." Without withdrawing it further than 
the door of the oven, spread lightly and quicldy upon this 
a meringue of the whites whipped vip stiff with a half-cup 
jelly — add gradually. Use crab-apple jelly, if bitter almond 
has been jjut into the custard ; currant, for vanilla ; straw- 
berry or other sweet conserve, if you season the custard 
with lemon. Bake, covered, for five minutes. Then re- 
move the lid, and brown the meringue very slightly. 

Eat cold, Avith powdered sugar sifted thickly over the 

top. 

Arrow-root Pudding 

Is made according to either of the foregoing receipts, 

substituting arrow-root for corn-starch. Farina puddinga 

also. 

Bread Pudding. »J< 

1 quart of milk. 

2 cups of fine bread-crumbs — -always stale and dry. 
4 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls melted butter. 

Nutmeg to taste. 

^ teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 

Beat the yolks very light, and having soaked the bread- 
crumbs well in the milk, stir these together ; then the butter 
and seasoning, with the soda ; lastly the whites. Bake to a 
fine brown, and eat hot with pudding-sa\ice. 

This, if well mixed and baked, is quite a different dish 



BAKED PUDDINGS. 391 

from tlie traditional and much-despised bread-pudding 
of stingy housekeepers and boarding-house landladies. 
" Which," says an English Josh. Billings, " nothing can 
be more promiskus than a boarding-house bread-pudding." 
Try mine instead, putting all the sugar into the sauce, and 
enough there, and you will cease to sneer. 

You may boil this pudding, if you like, in a floured 
cloth or buttered mould. 

Fkuit Bbead Pudding. »J« 

1 quart milk. 
5 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls melted butter. 

2 " (heaping) sugar, 

■^ lb. rai<4ins, seeded and cho^^ped. 
^ " currants, well Avashed and picked over. 
Handful of shred citron, and 1 teaspoonful soda dis- 
solved in hot water. 
2 scant cups fine bread-crumbs, from a stale loaf. 

Beat the yolks light with the sugar, add the bread- 
crumbs when they have been well soaked in the milk, and 
stir until smooth. Next put in the fruit well dredged with 
flour, the soda, and finally the whites whipped to a stiff 
froth. 

This will require longer and steadier baking than if the 
fruit were not in. Cover it if it threatens to harden too 
soon on top. Send to table hot in the dish in which it was 
baked, or turn out very carefully upon a hot plate. Eat 
warm, with pudding-sauce. 

BrEAD-AND-B UTTER PuDDING. 

4 eggs. 

3 cups milk. 



392 COMMON SENSK. 

f cup siigar. 

Vanilla or other Extract. 
Nutmeg to taste. 
Bread and butter. 

Cut thin slices of bread (stale), spread thickly with 
butter, and sprinkle with siigar. Fit them neatly and 
closely into a buttered pudding-dish until it is half full. 
Lay a small, heavy j^late upon them to prevent them from 
floating, and satxii-ate them gi'adually with a hot custard 
made of the milk heated almost to boiling, then taken from 
the fire, and the beaten eggs and sugar stirred in with the 
seasoning. Let the bread soak in this fifteen minutes or 
so, adding by degrees all the custard. Just before you put 
the pudding in the oven, take up the plate gently. If the 
bread still rise to the top, keep down with a silver fork or 
spoon, laid upon it from the side of the dish, until the cus- 
tard thickens, when slip it out. Eat cold. 

Bkead-and-marmalade Pudding b^ 

Is made precisely as above, except that each slice is spread 
■with marmalade or jam besides the butter. 
Either of these puddings is good boiled. 

Alice's Pudding. bJ* 

1 quart of milk. 

4 eggs. 

1 cup very fine dry bread-crumbs. 

■^ " strawberry or other sweet jam. 

I" " sugar. 

Butter a pvidding-dish ; sprinkle the bottom with bread- 
crumbs; pour over these half a cujd jam, and cover this 
well with the rest of the crumbs, wet witli a very little 
milk. Heat the quart of milk until near boiling, take it 



BAKED PUDDINGS. 393 

from the fire and add, gradually, the beaten yolks and 
Bngar, stirring in the beaten whites lightly at the last. 
Heat this by degi'ees, stirring constantly until it begins to 
thicken; put it, spoonful by spoonful, iipon the layer of 
bread-crumbs, taking care not to disturb these, and wher 
all is in, bake until well " set " and very slightly browned 
Eat cold. Cream is a delicious accompaniment to it. 

The Queen of Puddings. *J« 

1^ cup white sugar. 

2 cups fine dry bread-crumbs. 

5 eggs. 

1 tablespoonful of butter. , -^ 

Vanilla, rose-water, or lemon seasoning. 

1 quart fresh rich milk, and one half cup jelly or jam. 

Rub the butter into a cup of sugar ; beat the yolks very 
light, and stir these together to a cream. The bread-crumbs, 
soaked in milk, come next, then the seasoning. Bake this 
in a buttered pudding-dish — a large one and but two-thirda 
full — until the custard is " set." Draw to the mouth of 
the oven, spread over with jam or other nice fruit-conserve. 
Cover this with a meringue made of the whipped whites 
and half a cup of sugar. Shut the oven and bake until the 
meringue begins to color. 

Eat cold, with cream. 

You may, in strawberry season, substitute the fresh 
fruit for preserves. It is then truly delightful. 

Cracker Pudding. »J* 
1 quart milk. 

1 cup powdered cracker 
6 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls melted butter. 

•J teaspoonful soda — dissolved in boiling water. 
17* 



394 COMMON SENSE. 

Heat the milk slightly, and pouring it over the cracker 
let them stand together fifteen minutes, Stii- into this first 
the beaten yolks, then the butter and soda ; beat all smooth 
and add the whipped whites. 

Eat hot, with pudding-sauce. 

DOKCHESTER CrACKER PlUM PuDDING. 

2 quarts milk. 

6 Boston crackers — split and buttered. 

8 eggs — beaten very light. 

2 cups sugar. Nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon to taste. 

1 teaspoonful of salt. 

1 lb. raisins, seeded and cut in two. 

Make a custard of the milk, eggs, and sugar, seasoned 
with the spices, by heating the milk almost to boiling, then 
taking it from the fire and adding gi-adually the yolks, 
sugar, seasoning, and whites. Do not boil it again. Butter 
a pudding-dish ; put a layer of crackers in the bottom, 
moistening with a few spoonfuls of the hot custard. On 
this lay some of the raisins — a thick stratum ; cover with 
crackers — the buttered side downward; moisten with the 
custard, and proceed in this order until your crackers and 
fruit are used up. Pour in custard xmtil only the top oi 
the upper layer is visible, but not enough to float them ; 
cover closely and set in the cellar over night. In the morn- 
ing add the rest of the custard, at intervals of five or six 
minutes between the cujifuls. 

Bake two hours in a moderate oven. Cover with paper 
if it should seem likely to harden too fast. 

Eat hot, with savice. 

Cracker Suet Pudding. *J« 

\ lb. beef suet, freed from strings, and powdered, 
1 cup fine cracker-crumbs. 



BAKKD PUDDINGS. 395 

2 tablespoonfuls sugar. 
4 eggs. 

3 cups milk. 
Pinch of soda. 

1 teaspoouful salt. 

Beat tlie yolks witli the sugar ; add to these the milk 
in which the cracker has been soaked for half an hour; 
work into a smooth i>aste before putting in the suet and 
soda. "Whip the whites in last, and bake nearly, if not 
quite an hoiir. Cover, should the crust form too rapidly. 
Eat hot, with wine sauce. 

You may also steam or boil this pudding. 

Feuit Cracker Pudding, 

1 cup powdered cracker soaked in one pint of milk. 
^ lb. beef suet, cleared from strings and powdered. 
■^ " raisins, seeded and cut in two. 
J " currants, washed and dried. 
3 oz. almonds. 
5 es;o;s. 
•J cxxp sugar. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg, and same of cinnamon. Pose- 
water to taste. 

Blanch the almonds and cut A\dth a sharp knife into thin 
shavings. Beat the yolks with the sugar until light and 
thick ; mix in the cracker and milk ; the suet and the fruit, 
well dredged ; the spice and rose-water ; then the whipped 
whites, finally the almonds. 

Bake in a buttered mould one hour and a half. Turn 
out and eat with wine sauce. 

Or, 
Boil in a well-bixttered mould. In this case, blanch, but do 



396 COMMON SENSE. 

not cut the almonds, and do not stone the raisins. Butter 
the mould so thickly that you can stick the almonds to the 
sides in regular I'ows, alternately with rows of whole raisins. 
Put in the mixture gently, not to disturb these ; cover the 
mould and boil or steam three hours. Treated in this way, 
it makes a pretty-looking pudding. It is palatable in any 
shape. 

Cracker akd Jam Pudding. 

3 eggs. 

^ cup cracker-crumbs. 

-|- cup sugar. 

1 tablespoonful butter. 

1 teacup milk. 

•| lemon — juice and grated rind. 

3 tablespoonfuls jam. 

Soak the cracker in the milk ; rub the butter and sugar 
together, adding the lemon, and beating to a cream ; then 
stir in the beaten yolks ; next the cracker and milk ; lastly, 
the whites. Butter a deep dish, and put the jam, which 
should be pretty stiff, at the bottom. Pill up with the mix- 
tiu'e, and bake about half an hour. 

Eat cold, with sugar sifted, over the top. 

Rice Pudding (J'lain). *^ 

1 coffee-cup rice. 

2 quarts milk. 

8 tablespoonfuls sugar, 

1 teaspoonful salt. 

Butter the size of an egg — melted. 

Nutmeg and cinnamon to taste. 

Wash and pick over the rice, and soak in one pint of 
the milk two hours. Then add the re.st of the milk, th» 



BAKED PUDDINGS. 3'J7 

sugar, salt, butter, and spice. Bake two hours, and eat 

cold. 

Rice and Tapioca Pudding. 

■^ cup rice. 
■^ " tapioca, 
f " sugar. 
3 pints milk. 
Cinnamon to taste. 

Soak the tapioca in a cup of the milk three hours ; wash 
the rice ir several waters, and soak in another cup of milk 
as long as you do the tapioca. Sweeten the remaining 
quart of milk ; put all the ingredients together, and bake 
two hours in a slow oven. Eat cold. 

EicE Pudding with Eggs. *^ 

1 quart milk. 

4 eggs. 

■^ cup rice. 

^ " sugar. 

1 tablespoon ful butter. 

Handful of raisins, seeded and cut in two. 

Soak the rice in a pint of the milk an hour, then set the 
saucepan containing it where it Avill slowly heat to a boil. 
Boil five minutes ; remove and let it cool. Beat the yolks, 
add the sugar and butter, the rice and the milk in which it 
was cooked, with the pint of unboiled ; the beaten whites, 
and finally the raisins. Grate nutmeg on the top, and bake 
three-quarters of an hour, or until the custard is well set 
and of a light brown. Eat cold. 

» Rice-Flour Pudding 

2 quarts of milk. 
•J lb. rice-flour. 



I 



398 COMMON SENSE. 

] cup sxigar. 
. 6 eggs. 

1 tablesjjoonful butter. 

1 small teaspoonful nutmeg. 

2 teaspoonfuls vaiiilla or rose-water. 

1 lemon — juice of the whole, and half the gi-ated rind. 

Heat the milk to a boil, and stir in the rice-flour wet 
to a smooth paste with a little cold milk; boil until well 
thickened, stirring all the time. Take from the fire, and 
■while still hot stir in the butter, the yolks beaten light with 
the sugar, the lemon, nutmeg, and the whites of three eggs. 
Mix well, and bake in a buttered dish three-quarters of an 
hour. Just before you take it up, draw to the mouth of 
the oven and cover with a meringue of the remaining whites, 
beaten stiff with two tablespoonfuls powdered sugar, and 
flavored with vanilla or rose-water. Bake until the merin- 
gue begins to brown. Sift sugar on the top and eat cold. 

Batter Pudding. ^ 

1 pint of milk. 

4 eggs — whites and yolks beaten separately. 

2 even cups flour. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 
1 pinch of soda. 

Bake in a buttered dish three-quarters of an hour. 
Serve in the pudding-dish as soon as it is drawn from the 
oven, and eat with rich sauce. 

Or 
You may boil it in a buttered mould or floured bag, flour- 
ing it ver9/ thickly. Boil two hours, taking care the boiling 
does not cease for a moment until the pudding is done. 



BAKED PUDDINGS. 399 

Batter Pudding {N'o. 2). 

1 quart milk. 

10 tablespoonfuls flour. 

7 eggs. 

1 teas2)oonful salt, 

■J " soda, dissolved in hot water. 

1 " cream-tartar, sifted into the flour. 

Wet the flour gradually with the milk to a very smootli 
paste ; next add the beaten yolks, then the salt and soda ; 
lastly the whites, whipped to a stift' froth. Bake in a but- 
tered dish for an hour, and serve at once. Eat hot, with 
sauce. 

If you boil it, leave plenty of room to swell in the bag, 
and boil two houi-s. 

Cottage Pudding. »J< 

1 cup of sugar. 

1 tablespoonful of butter. 

2 eggs. 

1 cup sweet milk. 

3 cups flour, or enough to make a tolerably stiff batter, 
^ teaspoonful of soda. 

1 " cream-tartar, sifted with the flour. 

1 " salt. 

Eub the butter and sugar together, beat in the yolks, 
then the milk and soda, the salt, and the beaten Avhites, al- 
ternately with the flour. Bake in a buttered mould ; turn 
out upon a dish ; cut in slices, and eat with liquid sauce. 

This is a simple but very nice pudding. 



400 common sense. 

German Puffs. *J« 
3 cups flour. 
3 " milk. 
3 eggs — whites and yolks beaten separately and very 

light. 
3 teaspoonfuls melted butter. 
1 saltspoonful salt. 

Pour in nine well-buttered cups of same size as that 
\ised for measuring, and bake to a fine brown. Eat as soon 
as done, with sauce. 

Cup Puddings. 
3 eggs. 

The weight of the eggs in sugar and in flour. 
Half their weight in bvxtter. 
2 tablespoonfuls milk. 
\ teaspoonful soda, dissolved in hot water. 

Kub the sugar and butter together; beat the yolks light 
and add then the milk and soda ; lastly the flour and beaten 
whites alternately. Fill six small cups, well buttered, and 
bake twenty minutes, or until a nice brown. Eat warm. 

Lemon Pudding. bJ« 

1 cup of sugar. 
4 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls corn-starch. 

2 lemons — ^juice of both and rind of one. 

1 2iiut milk. 

1 tablespoonful butter. 

Heat the milk to boiling, and stir in the corn-starch, 
wet with a few spoonfuls of cold water. Boil five minutes, 
stirring constantly. While hot mix in the butter and set it 
away to cool. Beat the yolks light, and add the sugar, mix- 



BAKED PUDDINGS. 40J 

ing very thoroughly before putting in the lemon-juice and 
grated rind. Bent this to a stiff cream and add gradually 
to the corn-starcli milk, when the latter is cold. Stir all 
smooth, put in a buttered dish, and bake. Eat cold. 

Lemon Meringue Pudding {very nice). 

1 quart milk. 

2 cups bread-crumbs. 
4 eggs. 

^ cup butter. 

1 cup white sugar. 

1 large lemon — ^juice and half the rind, grated. 

Soak the bread in the milk ; add the beaten yolks, with 
the butter and sugar rubbed to a cream, also the lemon. 
Bake in a buttered dish iintil firm and slightly brown. Draw 
to the door of tlie oven and cover with a meringue of the 
whites whipped to a froth with three tablespoonfuls of pow- 
dered sugar, and a little lemon-juice. Brown very slightly; 
sift ]»owdered sugar over it, and eat cold. 

You may make an orange pudding in the same way. 

CocoANUT Pudding. 

■|- lb. grated cocoanut. 

^ cup stale sponge cake, crumbed fine. 

1 cup sugar. 

1 large cup rich milk — cream, if you can get it. 
6 eggs. 

2 teaspoonfuls vanilla, or rose-water. 

Cream the butter and sugar, and add the beaten yolks. 
"Wlien these are well mixed, put in the cocoanut ; stir well 
before adding the milk, cake-crumbs, flavoring ; and lastly, 
the whites of three eggs. Whip the other whites stiff with 
throe tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar ; flavor with vanilla, 



t 



402 COMMON SENSE. 

and just before taking the pudding from tlie oven, spread 
tins meringne ovei* the top, and close the oven until the 
icing is slightly browned. 

Bake in all three-quarters of an hour. 

Orange Marmalade Pudding. 

1 cup fine bread-crumbs, 
■^ " sugar. 

1 " milk or cream. 
4 eggs. 

2 teaspoonfuls butter. 

1 cup orange or other sweet marmalade. 

Rub the butter and sugar together ; add the yolks well 
beaten, the milk, bread-crumbs, and the whites whipped to 
a froth. Put a layer of this in the bottom of a well-buttered 
mould, spread thickly with some pretty stifi' marmalade — 
orange is nicest — then another layer of the mixture, and so 
on until the mould is full, having the custard mixture at 
top. Bake in a moderate oven about an hour, turn out of 
the mould upon a dish and serve, with sweetened cream or 
custard. 

Macaroni Pudding. »J« 

1 cup macaroni broken into inch lengths. 

1 quart milk. 
4 eggs. 

■^ lemon — juice and grated peel. 

2 tablespoonfuls butter, 
f cup sugar. 

Simmer the macaroni in half the milk until tender. 
Wliile hot stir in the butter, the yolks, well beaten up with 
the sugar, the lemon, and lastly the w^hipped whites. Bake 



BAKED PUDDINGS. 403 

in a buttered mould about balf an liour^ or until nicely 
browned. 

Vermicelli Pudding 

May be made according to the foregoing receipt. 

Neapolitan Pudding, — ( Very fine.) »J« 

1 large cup fine bread-crumbs soaked in milk. 

^ cup sugar. 

1 lemon — juice and grated rind. 

6 eggs. 

•J lb. stale sponge-cake. 

•^ " macaroons — almond. 

^ cup jelly or jam, and one small tumbler of sherry 

^vine. 
■^ Clip milk pom-ed upon the bread-crimibs. 
1 tablespoonful melted butter. 

Rub the butter and sugar together; put the beaten 
yolks in next ; then the soaked bread-crumbs, the lemon, 
juice, and rind, and beat to a smooth, light paste before 
adding the whites. Butter your mould very well, and put 
in the bottom a light layer of dry bread-crumbs ; upon this 
one of macaroons, laid evenly and closely together. Wet 
these with wine, and cover Avith a layer of the mixture ; then 
with slices of sponge-cake, spread thickl}'- with jelly or jam ; 
next macaroons, wet with wine, more custard, sponge-cake, 
and jam, and so on until the mould is full, putting a layer 
of the mixture at the top. Cover closely, and steam in the 
oven three-quarters of an hour ; then remove the cover to 
brown the top. Turn out carefully into a dish, and pour 
over it a sauce made of curi'ant jelly warmed, and beaten 
up with two tablespoonfuls melted butter and a glass of 
pale sherry. 

A plain round mould is best for the pudding, as much 



404 COMMON SENSE. 

of its comeliness depends npon the manner in wliicli tlio 
cake and macaroons are fitted in. 

It is a pretty and good pudding, and will well repay 
the trifling trouble and care required to manage itpropei'ly. 

It is also nice boiled in a buttered mould. 

Rhubarb Pudding. 

Prepare the stalks as for pies ; cover the bottom of a 
buttei-ed pudding-dish with slices of bread and butter; 
cover with the rhubarb cut into short pieces ; sprinkle 
abimdantly with siigar ; then put on another layer of bread 
and butter, and so on until your dish is full. Cover and 
steam, while baking, for half an hour. Remove the lid 
and bake ten minutes, or until browned. 

Eat hot with sauce. 

Gooseberry Pudding. 

1 pint ripe or nearly ripe gooseberries. 

6 or 8 slices toasted stale bread. 

1 cup milk. 

■^ " sugar. 

1 tablespoonful butter, melted. 

Stew the gooseberries ten minutes — very slowly, not to 
break them. Cut your slices of bread to fit your pudding- 
dish, and toast to a light brown on both sides, (Cut ofi" 
all the crust before toasting.) Dip each slice, Avhile hot, 
in milk, and spread with the melted butter. Cover the 
bottom of the dish with them; put next a layer of the 
gooseberries, sprinkled thickly with sugar ; more toast, 
more berries, and so on, until the dish is full. Cover 
closely and steam in a moderate oven twenty or twenty- 
five minutes. Turn out ujicn a hot dish and pour over it 
a good pudding-sauce. 



BAKED PUDDINGS. 405 

This is considered a wholesome breakfast dish, and ia 
certainly good. In this case omit the sauce, sift powdered 
sugar over the top, and eat with the same. 

Newakk Pudding. 

1 cup fine bread-crumbs soaked in a pint of the milk. 

1 quart of milk. 
5 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls rice-flour. 

^ lb. raisins seeded, cut in two, and dredged with flour. 
Vanilla or bitter almond extract. 

2 tablespoonfuls melted butter, and a half-teaspoonful 
soda. 

Beat the yolks light ; add the soaked bread-crumbs and 
milk ; stir to a smooth batter, put in the rice-flour, wet up 
first with cold milk ; the reserved pint of milk, the season- 
ing, butter, the fruit, lastly the whites whipped stiff. Bake 
an hour in a buttered mould ; turn out and pour sauce 
over it, serving hard sauce also with it. 

Or, 
You may boil the mixture two hours in a floured cloth or 
buttered mould. 

Baked Plum Pudding. 

1^ lb. of flour. 

1 lb. raisins seeded, ci;t in two, and dredged with flour. 

^ lb, suet, freed from strings and powdered. 

1 cup sugar. 

2 oz. citron, shred fine. 

5 eggs — whites and yolks beaten separately. 
Nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves — one teaspoonfiil each. 
Milk to make a thick batter of the floui-. Begin with 
two cups, and add more if necessary. 



406 CO]tfMON SENSE. 

Beat the yolks and stigar together ; add the suet and 
spice, then the flour, moistening the mixture gradually 
with milk until you can move the spoon in it. Dredge 
the fruit and put in by degrees ; finally, stir in the beaten 
whites. Beat all very hard and long before baking in a 
buttered mould. It Avill require at least an hour and a 
half in a moderate oven. 

Turn out, and eat with rich sweet sauce. 

Belle's Dumplings. 

1 qxxart prepared flour. 

2^ tablespoonfuls lard and butter mixed. 

2 cups of milk, or enough to make a soft dough. 

Boll out a quarter of an inch thick, cut into oblong 
pieces, rounded at the corners ; put a great spoonful damson, 
cherry, or other tart preserve in the middle and roll into a 
dumpling. Bake three-quarters of an hour, brush over 
with beaten egg while hot, set back in the oven three min- 
utes to glaze. 

Eat hot with brandy or wine sauce. 

Or, 

You may make a roll-pudding of it by rolling out the paste 
into an oblong sheet, spreading thickly with the preserves, 
folding it up as one would a travelling-shawl to be put into 
a strap, pinching the ends together that the juice may not 
escape, and boiling in a floured cloth fitted to the shape of 
the " roley-poley." Boil an hour and a half. 

BoiLEB Puddings. 

You can boil puddings in a bowl, a mould, or a cloth. 
The mould should have a closely -'fitting toj) and be buttered 
well — top and all — before the batter or dough is put in. 



BOILED PUDDINGS. 407 

ThestJ moulds are usually made with hasps or other fasten- 
ing. In lack of this, you had better tie down the cover 
securely. I once boiled a pudding in a tin pail, the top of 
which I made more secure by fitting it over a cloth floured 
on the inside, lest the 2)udding should stick. The experi- 
ment succeeded admirably, and I commend the suggestion 
to those who find, after the pudding is mixed, that their 
mould leaks, or the bowl that did duty as a substitute has 
been broken, and nothing said to " the mistress " about it. 
If you use a bowl, butter it, and tie a floured cloth tightly 
over the top. If a cloth, have it clean and sweet, and flour 
bountifully on the inside. In all, leave room for batter, 
bread, rice, and cracker puddings to swell. Tie the stxing 
very tightly about the mouth of the bag, which must be 
made with felled seams at sides and bottom, the better to 
exclude the water. 

The water must be boiling when the pudding goes in, 
and not stop boiling for one instant until it is done. If it 
is in a bag, this must be turned several times, under water^ 
to prevent sticking or scorching to the sides of the pot. 
The bag must also be entii-ely covered, while the water 
should not quite reach to the top of a mould. If you usa 
a basin, dip the cloth in boiling water before dredging with 
flour on the inside. 

When the time is up, take mould, basin, or cloth from 
the boiling pot, and plunge distantly into cold water ; then, 
turn out without the loss of a second. This will prevent 
sticking, and leave a clearer impression of the mould vipon 
the contents. 

Boiled puddings should be served as soon as they are 
done, as they soon become heavy. 

Many of the baked puddings I haA'e described are quite 
as good boiled. As a safe rule, double ike time of baking^ 
if you hoU, 



408 COMMON BENSE. 

Bekry Pudding. 

1 pint of milk. 

2 eggs. 

1 saltspoonful salt. 

^ teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 

■^ " cream-tartar, sifted through a cup of flourj 

and added to enough flour to make a thick batter. 

1 pint blackberries, raspberries, currants, or huckle- 
berries, well dredged with flour — stirred in at the last. 

Boil one hour in buttered mould. 

HUCBXEBERRY PUDDIXG. t^ 

1 pint milk. 

2 eggs. 

1 quart floui- — or enough for thick batter. 

1 gill baker's yeast. 

1 saltspoonful salt, 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in boiling water. 

Nearly a quart of berries — well dredged with floiu\ 

Make a batter of eggs, milk, flour, yeast, salt, and soda, 
and set it to rise in a warm place about four hours. "VVlien 
you are ready to boil it, stir in the dredged fruit quickly 
and lightly. Boil in a buttered mould or a floured cloth 
for two hours. 

This will be found lighter and more wholesome than 
boiled pastry. 

Eat hot with sweet sauce. 

Fruit Valise Pudding. 
1 quart flour. 
1 tablespoonful lard, and same of butter. 

1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 

2 " cream-tartar — sifted through the flour. 



BOILED PUDDINGS. 405 

1 saltspoonfvil salt. 

2 cups milk, or enougli to make the floiir into soft 

dough. 
1 quart berries, chopped apples, sliced peaches, or other 
fruit ; jam, ]> reserves, canned fruit, or marmalade may- 
be substituted for the berries. 

Roll out the crust less than half an inch thick — indeed, 
a quarter of an inch will do — into an oblong sheet. Cover 
thickly with the fruit and sprinkle with siigar. Begin at 
one end, and roll it ixp closely, the fruit inside. In putting 
this in, leave a narrow margin at the other end of the roll, 
which should be folded down closely like the flap of a pocket- 
book. Pinch the ends of the folded roll together, to prevent 
the escape of the fruit, and baste up in a bag, tlie same size 
and shape as the " valise." Flour the bag well before put- 
tuig in the pudding, having previously dipped it — the cloth 
— into hot water, and wriiig it out. 

Boil an hour and a half. Serve hot with sauce, and cut 
crosswise in slices half an inch thick. 

Boiled Apple Dumplings. (iVb. 1.) »f« 

Make a paste according to the above receipt ; cut in 
sqixares, and i)ut in the centre of each an apple, pared and 
cored. Bring the corners together ; enclose each dumpling 
in a small square cloth, tied up bag-wise, leaving room to 
swell. Each cloth should be dipped in hot water, wrung 
out and floured on the inside before the apple is put in. 

Boil one hour, 

Apple Dumplings. {JVo. 2.) *J< 

1 quart flour. 
J lb. suet. 
1 teaspoonful salt. 
18 



^10 COMMON SENSE. 

^ teaspoonful soda dissolved in liot water. 

1 " cream-tartar sifted in tlie flour. 

Cold water enough to make into a tolerably stiff paste. 

Roll out, cut into squares, pvit in the middle of each a 
fine, juicy apple, pared and cored. Fill the hole left by 
the core with marmalade, or with sugar, wet with lemon- 
juice. Stick a clove in the sugar. Close the paste, tie up 
in the cloths, when you have wet them with hot water and 
floured them, and boil one hour. 

A pleasing idea for dumpling cloths is to crochet them 
in a close stitch with stout tidy cotton. They are easily 
done, wash and wear well, and leave a very pretty pattern 
vipon the paste when they are opened. Crochet them lound, 
with a cord for drawing run into the outer edjje. 

Boiled Fruit Pudding. 

Prepare a paste in a6cordai^ce with either of the fore- 
going receipts, but roll into one sheet. Lay apples, peaches, 
or berries in the centre, paring and slicing the fruit ; s^irin- 
kle with sugar, and close the paste over them as you would 
a dumpling. Dip a stout cloth in hot water, flour the in- 
side, put in the pudding, tie tightly, and boil two hours and 
a half. 

Eat hot with sauce. 

Rice Dumplings. 

. A.U. rice boiled v/ithout stirring, until soft, and at the 
top dry. 

i/( pippins, pared and cored. 

Strawberry marmalade or crab-apple jelly. 

Let the rice cool upon a sieve or coarse cloth, that it 
may dry at the same time. Di]) your dumpling cloths in hot 
water ; wrijig them out and flour well inside. Put a handful 



BOILED PUDDINGS. 411 

of the cold rice upon each, spreading it out into a smooth sheet. 
Lay in the centre an apple ; fill the hole left by the core with 
marmalade or jelly ; draw up the cloth carefully to enclose 
the apple with a coating of rice ; 1 ie, and boil one hour. 

Turn out with care ; pour sweet sauce or rich sweetened 
cream over them, and send around more in a boat with 
them. 

Suet Dumplings {lylain). 

2 cups fine bread-crumbs, soaked in a very little milk. 
1 cup beef suet, freed from strings, and powdered. 

4 eggs, whites and yolks separated, and beaten very 

^light. 

1 tablesjioonful sugar. 

1 teaspoonful cream-tartar, sifted into the flour. 

\ " soda dissolved in boiling water. 

1 « salt. 

Enough milk to mix into a sti^ paste. 

* ". ■' " 
Make into large balls Avith floured hands ; put into 

dumpling cloths dipped into hot water and floured inside ; 
leave room to swell, and tie the strings very tightly. 

Boil three-quarters of an hour. Serve hot with wine 
Fauce. 

Fruit Suet Dumplings 

Are made as above, with the addition of ^ lb. raisins, 
seeded, chopped, and dredged with flour, and ^ lb. currants, 
washed, dried, and dredged. 

Boil one hour and a quarter. 

Boiled Indian Meal Pudding. 
1 quart milk. 
1 " Indian meal. 

3 eggs. 

3 heaping tablespoonfuls siigar, and 1 teaspoonful salt, 
i lb. beef suet, chopped into powder. 



412 COMMON SENSE. 

- Scald the milk, and while boiling hot stir in the meal 
and suet with the salt. When cold add the yolks, beaten 
light with the sugar, then the whites. Dip your bag in hot 
water, flour it, and fill half full with the mixture, as it wiU 
swell very much. Boil five hours. 

Eat very hot with butter and sugar. 



Cabinet Pudding. 



I lb. flour. 
J " butter. 



1^ lb. sugar. 

•^ " raisins, seeded and cut in three pieces each. 
^ " currants, washed and dried. 
^ cup cream or milk. 
•^ lemon — juice and rind gi'ated. 
Cream the butter and sugar ; add the beaten yolks, then 
the milk and the flour, alternately with the v/hites. Lastly, 
stir in the fruit, well dredged with flour, turn into a but- 
tered mould, and boil two hours and a half at least. 

Serve hot, with cabinet pudding sauce over it. (^Sea 
Sweet Sauces.) 

Eve's Pudding. 
1 heaping cup of fine dry bread-crumbs. 
•^ lb. pared and chopped apples. 
■^ " raisins, seeded and chopped. 
6 oz. currants, washed and dried. 
6 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg, and same of allspice. 
1 glass brandy. 

1 cup sugar, and 1 teaspoonful salt. 
^ lb. suet, chopped to powder. 
Work the sugar into the beaten yolks ; then the suet 
and crumbs, with the chopped apples ; next tho brandy 



BOILED PUDDINGS. 413 

and spice, then the whipped whites ; lastly the fruit, well 
dredged with flour. 

Boil in a buttered bowl or mould three hours. Eat hot 
•with sauce. 

The Queex of Plum Puddings. 

1 lb. butter. 

1 " of suet, freed from strings and chopped fine. 

1 " of sugar. 
2^ lbs. of flour. 

2 "of raisins, seeded, chojiped, and dredged with 
flour. 

2 lbs. of currants, picked over carefully after they are 

washed. 
^ lb. of citron, shred fine. 
12 eggs, whites and yolks beaten separately. 
1 pint of milk. 

1 cup of brandy. 
^ oz. of cloves. 

■^ " of mace. 

2 grated nutmegs. 

Cream the butter and sugar ; beat in the yolks when 
you have whipped them smooth and light ; next put in the 
milk; then the flour, alternately with the beaten whites; 
theix the brandy aud spice ; lastly the fruit, well dredged 
with flour. Mix all thoroughly ; wring out your jHidding- 
cloth in hot water ; flour well inside, pour in the mixture, 
and boil five hours. 

I can confidently recommend this as the best plum pud- 
ding I have ever tasted, even when the friend at whose 
table I had first the pleasure of eating it imitated the 
example of " good King Arthur's " economical sjiouse, and 
what we " couldn't eat that night," " next daj/ fried," by 
heating a little butter in a frying-pan, and laying in slices 



414 COMT\ION SENSE. 

of lier pndcl'ng, warmed them into almost their origina* 
excellence. It will keep a long time — in a locked closet oj* 
safe. 

Orange Roley-Poley. 

Make a light paste as for apple dumplings or valise 
pndding, roll in an oblong sheet, and lay oranges (sweet 
ones), peeled, sliced, and seeded, thickly all over it. Sprin- 
kle with white sugar ; scatter a teaspoonful or two of the 
grated yellow peel over all and roll up closely, folding 
down the end to secure the syrup. Boil in a pudding- 
cloth one hour and a half. 

Eat with lemon sauce. 

Cherry or Currant Pyramid. 

Wash and stone the chenies, or pick the currants from 
their stems. Make some good light crust, roll it out a 
qtiarter of an inch thick, and cut for the bottom a round 
piece abou.t the size of a tea-plate. Yoii can use the top 
of a tin pail for a cutter. Spread your fruit upon this, 
and sprinkle with sugar, leaving a half inch margin all 
around. Roll out a second sheet an inch less in diameter 
than the first, lay it carefully upon the fruit, and turn up 
the margin of the lower piece over the edge of this. Spread 
this, in turn, with fruit and sugar, and cover with a third 
and lessening round ; proceeding in this order until the 
sixth and topmost cover is not more than three inches 
across. Have ready a conical cap of stout muslin adapted 
to the proportions and dimensions of your pile ; dip it in 
boiling water, flour inside, and draw gently over all. It 
should be large enough to meet and tie under the base 
without cramping the pyramid. 

Boil two hours, and eat with sweet sauce. 



FKITrEKS, PANCAKES, ETC. 415 

FEITTERS, PANCAKES, Etc. 

Have plenty of nice sweet lard in wliick to fry fritters, 
and test the heat by dropping in a teaspoonful before you 
risk more. If right, the batter will rise quickly to the sur- 
face in a pufF-ball, spluttering and dancing, and will speedily 
assume a rich golden brown. Take up, as soon as done, 
with a skimmer, shaking it to dislodge any drops of lard 
that may adhere ; pile in a hot dish, sift sugar over them, 
and send instantly to the table. Fry as many at a time as 
the kettle will hold, and send in hot fresh ones while the 
batter lasts. A round-bottomed saucepan or kettle, rather 
wide at top, is best for frying them. 

Use a frying-pan for pancakes ; heat it ; put in a tea- 
spoonful or two of lard and run it quickly over the bottom ; 
then pour in a lai'ge ladleful of batter — enough to cover the 
bottom of the pan with a tliin sheet. Turn with a tiix 
spatula, very carefully, to avoid tearing it. The frying-pan 
should be a small one. Have ready a hot dish ; turn out 
the pancake upon it, cover with powdered sugar, and roll 
up dexterously like a sheet of paper. Send half a dozen to 
table at once, keeping them hot by setting the dish in the 
oven until enough are baked. 

I am thus explicit in these general instructions to save 
myself the tx'ouble, and the reader the tedium, of a repetition 
under each receipt. 

In olden times it was a boast of notable cooks tliat they 
could toss a pancake from the pan out of the top of the 
chimney with such accuracy of calculation, that it would 
turn itself on the way back, and settle in its place, ready, 
like St. Lawrence, to have the other side fried. I never 
saw a pancake tossed, although in my childish days I saw 
hundreds fried by the honorable tribe — now so fast passing 
away — of Old Virginia cooks. I do not advise this aero- 



416 COMMON SENSE. 

batic system of culinary exploit, especially for beginners. 
Indeed, I donbt if the pancakes would be found equal to the 
journey in these days of tight chimney-throats and cooking 
stoves. They must be out of pi-actice as well as their manu- 
facturers. Be careful not to have too much grease in the 
pan. 

Fritters {JVo. 1). »^ 

1 pint flour. 

4 eggs. 

1 teas2)Oonful salt. 

1 pint boiling water. 
Stir the flour into the water by degi-ees, and stir until 
it has boiled three minutes. Let it get almost cold, when 
beat in the yolks, then the whites of the eggs, which must 
be previously whipped sti^. 

Fritters [JVo. 2). 
6 eggs. 
1 quart mUk. 
3 cups flour. 

^ teaspoonful soda dissolved in hot water. 
1 teaspoonful cream-tartar sifted into the flour. 
A little salt. 

Beat the yolks and whites separately, of course ; stir the 
milk in with the former, then the soda, the flour, and salt, 
finally the whites. Beat very hard, and fry at once, in 
great ladlefuls. 

Apple Fritters, «^ 

A batter according to the preceding receipt. 

6 large juicy apples, pared and quartered. 

1 glass brandy. 

1 tablespoonful white sugar. 

1 teaspoonful cinnamon. 



FEITTEKS, PANCAXES, ETC. 417 

Put the brandy, a very little water, the sugar, and the 
spice into a covei'cd saucepan with the apples. Stir gently 
until half done ; drain off the liquor, every di"op ; mince 
the ajjple when cold, and stir into the batter. 

Or, 

You may parboil the apples in clear water, with a very 
little sugar, and proceed as just directed. 

Jelly Fritters. 

1 scant cup sponge-cake crumbs — very fine and dry, 

1 cup boiling milk. 
4 eggs. 

2 tablespoonfuls powdered sugar. 

1 teaspoonful corn-starch, wet in a little cold milk. 

2 tablespoonfuls currant or cranberry jelly. 

Soak the cake -crumbs in the boiling milk, .and stir in 
the corn-starch. Heat all together to a boil, stirring all 
the time. Beat the yolks light, and add to this as it cools, 
with the sugar. Whip in the jelly, a little at a time, and 
put in the whites — beaten tp a stiflF froth — at the last. 

Fry immediately. 

Bread Fritters. 

• 

1 quart milk — boiling hot. 

2 cvips fine bread crumbs (aerated bread is best). 

3 eggs. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 
1 tablespoonful butter — melted. 

1 saltspoonful salt, and the same of soda, dissolved in 
hot water. 

Soak the bread in the boiling milk ten minutes, in a 
covered bowl. Beat to a smooth paste ; add the whipped 
18* 



418 COMMON SENSE. 

yolks, the butter, salt, soda, and finally tlie whites, whipped 
stiff. 

Queen's Toast, 

Fry slices of stale baker's bi-ead — aerated, if you can get 
it — in boiling lard to a fine brown. Dip each slice qviickly 
in boiling water to remove the gi-ease. Sj)rinkle with pow- 
dered sugar, and pile upon a hot plate. Before toasting, 
cut out the slices with a round cake-cutter, taking off all the 
crust. They look better when piled up. Pour sweet wine 
sauce over them when hot, and serve at once. 

Jelly-Cake Fritters {very nice). ^J* 

Some stale sjionge, or plain cup cake, cut into rounds 
with a cake-cutter. 

Hot lard. 

Strawberry or other jam, or jelly. 

A little boiling milk. 

Cut the cake carefully and fry a nice brown. Dip each 
slice for a second in a bowl of boiling milk, di-aining this 
off on the side of the vessel ; lay on a hot dish and spread 
thickly with strawberry jam, peach jelly, or other delicate 
conserve. Pile them neatly and send around hot, with 
cream to pour over them. 

This is a nice way of iising up stale cake, and if rightly 
pi-eparedj the dessert is almost equal to Neapolitan pudding. 

Pancakes. 
1 pint of flour. 
G eggs. 

1 saltspoonful salt, and same of soda dissolved in 
vinegar. 

Milk to make a thin batter. Begin with two cups and 
add until the batter is of the right consistency. Beat tha 



SWEET, OK rUDDLN'G SAUCES. 41'^ 

yolks light, ftdd the salt, soda, and two cups of milk, then 
the flour and beaten whites alternately, and thin with moi'? 
miJk. 

Jelly or Jam Pancakes. 

A batter as above. When the pancakes are fried, lay 
upon a hot plate, spread qxiickly with nice jam or jelly, and 
roll up neatly upon the preserves. Sj^rinkle lightly with 
powdered sugar, and send around with wine sauce or sweet- 
ened cream. 



SWEET, OR PUDDING SAUCES. 
Hard Sauce. ^ 

Stir to a cream 1 cup of butter. 

3 cups of powdered sugar. 
When light, beat in f teacup of wine. 
Juice of a lemon. 
2 teaspoonfuls nutmeg. 

Beat long and hard until several shades lighter in color 
than at first and creamy in consistency. Smooth into shape 
with a broad knife dipped in cold water, and stamp with a 
wooden mould, first scalded and then dipped in cold watei'. 
Set upon the ice until the pudding is served. 

Be£-hive Sauce. ►Ji 

Mix a hard sauce according to the previous receipt, and 
when light, set aside tlnee or four tablespoonfuls in a plate. 
To the larger quantity left add gradually, cherry, currant, 
or cranberry juice enough to color it a good pink. Ked 
jelly will do if hemes are out of season. Beat the color- 
ing matter in thoroughly, and shape into a conical mound. 
Roll half a sheet of note-paper into a long, narrow funnel, 



420 COMMON SENSE. 

tie a string about it to kee-p it in shape, and fill with the 
Tincolored sauce. Squeeze it out gently through the small 
end in a ridge, beginning at the base of the cone and wind- 
ing about it to the top, filling your funnel as it is em])tied, 
and guiding it carefully. The ellect of the alternate white- 
and-pink lines is very pretty. 

Jf the pudding is one to which chocolate would be a 
pleasant addition, color with gi-ated chocolate, rubbed 
smooth in a little of the wine, and ridge with white. Set 
upon the ice or upon the cellar-floor until fii-m. Stick a 
colored almond or other ornamental candy ujion the top. 

This bee-hive is easily made, and will set ofi" even a plain 
pudding handsomely. 

Brandy Sauce {hard). *^ 

■^ cup butter. 

2 cups powdered sxigar. 

1 wineglass brandy. 

1 teaspoonful mixed cinnamon and mace. 
"Warm the butter very slightly, work in the sugar, and, 

when this is light, the brandy and spice. Beat hard — shape 
into a mould and set in a cold place until wanted. 

"White Wine Sauce (liquid). *J« 

^ cup butter, 

2^ cups powdered sugar. 

2 wineglasses pale sheriy or white wine. 
■^ cup boiling water. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

Work the butter into the sugar, moistening, as you go 
on, with boiling water. Beat long and hard until your 
bowl is nearly full of a creamy mixture. Then add gradu- 
ally the wine and nutmeg, still beating hard. Turn into a 



SWEET, OK PimmNG SAUCES. 42J 

tin pail, set within a saucepan of boiling water, and stir 
frequently xmtil the sauce is hot, but not iintil it boils. 
Take the saucepan from the fire and leave tiie pail stand- 
ing in the water, stirring the contents now and then, until 
you are ready to serve the pudding. 

If I'ightly nude, this sauce will be nearly as white aa 
milk. 

Lemon Sauce. *^ 

1 large cup of sugar. 

Nearly half a cup of butter. 

1 egg. 

1 lemon — all the j uice and half the grated peel. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

3 tablespoonfuls boiling water. 

Cream the butter and sugar and beat in the egg whipped 
light ; the lemon and nutmeg. Beat hard ten minutes, and 
add, a spoonful at a time, the boiling water. Put in a tin 
pail and set within the uncovered top of the tea-kettle, 
which you must keep boiling until the steam heats the 
sauce very hot, but not to boiling. Stir constantly. 

Milk Pudding Sauce. 

2 eggs, beaten stiff, 

1 large cup of sugai*. 

5 tablesjioonfuls boiling milk. 

■^ teaspoonful arrow-root or corn-starch, wet with cold 

milk. 
1 teaspoonful nutmeg, or mace. 
1 tablespoouful butter. 

Rub the butter into the sugar, add the beaten eggs, and 
work all to a creamy froth. Wet the corn-starch and put 
in next with the spice — finally, pour in by the spoonful the 
boiling milk, beating well all the time. Set within a sauce- 



422 coaiMON sease. 

pan of boiling water five minutes, stirring all the wliile, but 
do not let the sauce boil. 

This is a good sauce for bread and other simple pud 
dings. 

Cabinet Pudding Sauce. 

Yolks of four eggs, whipped very light. 

1 lemon — juice and half the gi-ated peel. 

1 good glass of wine. 

1 teaspoonful of cinnamon. 

1 Clip of sugar. 

1 tablespoonful of butter. 

Rub the butter into the sugar, add the yolks, lemon, and 
spice. Beat ten minutes and put in the wine, still stirring 
hard. Set within a saucepan of boiling water, and beat 
while it heats, but do not let it boil. 

Pour over the pudding. 

Fruit Pudding Sauce. »J« 
■J cup butter. 
2^ cups sugar. 

1 dessert sjioonful corn-starch wet in a litlte cold milk. 
1 lemon — juice and half the grated peel. 
1 glass of Avine. 
1 cup boiling water. 

Cream the butter and sugar well ; pour the coioi-starch 
into the boiling water and stir over a clear fire until it is 
well thickened ; put all together in a bowl and beat five 
minutes before retiu-ning to the saucepan. Heat once, al- 
most to the boiling point, add the wine, and serve. 

Custard Sauce. 

1 pint of milk. 

2 eggs, beaten very light. 



SWEET, OR PUUDKTG 6AUCE8. 423 

^ wineglass of Ijvandy, 

1 cup powdered sugar, stirred into the eggs. 

Nutmeg to taste. 

1 teaspoonful vanilla. 

Heat the milk to boiling, and add by degrees to the 
beaten eggs and sugar; put in the nutmeg, and set within a 
saucepan of boiling water. Stir until it begins to thicken. 
Take it off and add the brandy gradually. Set, until it ia 
wanted, within a pan of boiling water. 

Pour over the pudding when it comes from the mould. 

Jelly Sauce. «>J« 

■J cup currant jelly. 

1 tablespoonful butter, melted. 

•^ dessert spoonful arrowroot or corn-starch ; wet with 

cold water. 
1 glass pale sherry. 
3 tablespoonfuls boiling water. 

Stir the arrowroot iiato the boiling water and heat, stir- 
ring all the time, until it thickens ; add the butter, and set 
aside until almost cool, wlien beat in, spoonful by spoonful, 
the jelly to a smooth pink paste. Pour in the wine, stir 
hard, and heat in a tin vessel, set within another of boiling 
water, until very hot. 

Pour over and around Neapolitan, bread-and-marma.- 
lade puddings, cake-fritters, and Queen's toast. 

Sweetened Cream (cold). 

1 pint of cream. 

4 tablespoonfuls powdered sugar. 

1 teaspoonful of nutmeg. 

1 " vanilla. 



424 COMMON SENSE. 

Mix all well together, stirring until the sugar is dig. 
solved. Eat with jam puddings, queen of all puddings, 
Alice's pudding, and peach roley-poley. 

Cream Sauce (Ao«). 

1 pint cream. 

4 tablespoonfuls powdered sugar. 

Wlutcs of two eggs, beaten stiff. 

Extract of vanilla or bitter almonds, one teaspoonful. 

1 teaspoonful nutmeg. 

Heat the cream slowly in a vessel set in a saucepan of 
boiling water, stirring often. When scalding, but not bod- 
ing hot, remove it from the fire, put in the sugar and nut- 
meg ; stir three or four minutes and add the whites. Mix 
thoroughly and flavor, setting the bowl containing" it in a 
pan of hot water until the pudding is served, stii-ring now 
and then. 

Jelly Sauce (iVo. 2). *J« 

•^ cup curi-ant jelly. 

2 tablespoonfuls melted butter. 

1 lemon — ^juice and half the grated peel. 
■^ teaspoonful nutmeg. 

2 glasses wine, and a tablespoonful powdered sugar. 

Heat the butter a little more than blood- warm ; beat 
the jelly to a smooth batter and add gi'adually the butter, 
the lemon, and nutmeg. Warm almost to a boil, stirring 
all the while ; beat hard, put in the sugar, lastly the wine. 
Set in a vessel of hot water stirring now and then, until it 
is wanted. Keep it covered to hinder the escape of the 
wine flavor. Stir well before pouring out. 

This is a vei-y fine sauce, particularly for cabinet and 
Neapolitan puddings. 



custakds, blancmanges, etc. 425 

Custards, Blanc-Mange, Jellies, and Creams. 

A good rule for custard is five eggs to a quart of milk, 
and a tablespoonful of sugar to each egg, although a good 
plain custard can be made with an egg for each cup of milk 
and four tables^joonfuls of sugar to the quart, * Creams and 
custards that are to be frozen mvist have at least one-third 
more sugar than those which are not to undergo this 
process. 

In heating the milk for custard, do not let it quite boil 
befoi*e adding the yolks. My plan, which has ])roved a safe 
one thus far, is to take the scaldijig milk from the fire, and 
instead of pouring tlie beaten eggs into it, to \n\t a spoonful 
or two of the milk to them, beating well all the while, add- 
ing more and more milk as I mix, until there is no longer 
danger of sudden curdling. Then, return all to the fire 
and boil gently until the mixture is of the right consistency. 
From ten to fifteen minutes should thicken a quai't. Stir 
constantly. 

Always hoil milk and custard in a vessel set within 
another of hoilirlg water. If you have not a custard or 
farina kettle, improvise one by setting a tin pail inside of a 
pot of hot water, taking care it does not float, also that the 
water is not so deep as to bubble over the top. Custards 
are better and lighter if the yolks and whites are beaten 
separately, the latter stirred in at the last. 

Boiled Custard. 
1 quart of milk. 
Yolks of five eggs and the wliites of seven — (two for 

the meringue). 
■ 6 tablespoonfuls sugar. 
Vanilla flavoring — 1 teaspoonful to the pint. 

Heat the milk almost to boiling ; beat the yolks light 



420 COMMO:;? SENSE. 

and stir in tlie sugar. Add tLe milk in the manner de- 
scribed in "general directions" at head of this section; 
.stir in five whites whipped stiff; return to the fire and stir 
until thick, but not until it breaks. Season it with vanilla^ 
pour into glass cups ; whip the whites of two eggs to a 
meringue with a heaping tablespoonful of powdered sugar, 
and when the custard is cold, pile a little of this upon the 
top of each cup. You may lay a preserved strawberry or 
cherry, or a bit of melon sweetmeat, or a little bright jellj 
upon each. 

Almond Custabds. 

1 pint milk (half cream). 

■^ lb, almonds, blanched andpounded to a j)aste, a few at 
a time in a Wedgewood mortar, adding gi-adually — 

2 tablespoonfuls of rose-water. 

Yolks of three eggs and whites of four — (two for me- 
ringue). 
4 tablespoonfuls sugar. 
1 teaspoonful extract bitter almond in meringue. 

Scald the milk, add the beaten yolks, the sugar, the 
almond paste, and the whites of two eggs. Boil, stirring 
constantly until it thickens. Stir up well Avhen almost cold 
and pour into cups. Make a meringue of the whites of 
two eggs and two tablespoonfuls powdered sugar, flavored 
with bitter almond, and heap upon each cup. 

Quaking Custard, t^ 

3 cups milk. 

Yolks of four eggs — reserving the whites for me- 
ringue. 

^ package Cooper's or Coxe's gelatine. 

6 tablesjToonfuls sugar. 

Vanilla or lemon flavoring. Juice of a lemon in me 
rincue. 



CUSTAEDS, BLAXC-MANGES, ETC. 42 i 

Soak tlie gelatine in a cup of the cold milk Iavo hours. 
Then heat the rest of the milk to boiling, add that in (\'hich 
the gelatine is, and stir over the fire until the latter is quite 
dissolved. Take from the fire, and let it stand five minutes 
before putting in the beaten yolks and sugai-. Heat slowlj 
until it begins to tliicken perceptibly, not boil — say seven 
or eight minutes, stirring constantly. When nearly cold, 
having stirred it every few minutes during the time, flavor 
it, wash out your mould in cold water, and without wiping 
it, pour in the custard and set on the ice or in a cold place 
to harden. When quite firm, turn into a cold dish, loosen- 
ing it by wrapping about the mould a cloth wrung out in 
hot water, or dipping the mould for an instant in warm, 
not boiling water. Have ready the whites whipped to a 
froth with three tablespoonfuls powdered sugar and juice 
of a lemon. Heap neatly abotit the base of the moulded 
custard, like snow-drifts. If you like, you may dot thia 
with minute bits of currant jelly. 

Tliis is a pleasing dish to the eye and taste. 

Floating ftiAND. *J«i 

1 quart of milk. 

4 eggs — whites and yolks beaten sejiarately. 
4 tablespoonfuls (heaping) white sugar. 

2 teaspoonfids exti-act bitter almond or vanilla. 
■^ cup currant jelly. 

Beat the yolks well, stir in the sugar^ and add the hot, 
not boiling milk, a little at a time. Boil until it begins to 
thicken. When cool, flavor and pour into a glass dish, first 
stirring it up well. Heap upon it a meiingue of the whites 
into which you have beaten, gradually, half a cup of cur- 
rant, cranberry, or other bright tart jelly. Dot with bits 
of jelly cut into rings or stars, or straight slips laid on in a 
pattern. 



428 



COMMON SENSE. 



Spanish Cream. *J< 
■|- box of gelatine. 
1 quart of milk. 
Yolks of three eggs. 
1 small cup of sugar. 

Soak the gelatine an hour in the milk ; put on the fira 
and stir well as it warms. Beat the yolks very light with 
the sugar, add to the scalding milk, and heat to boiling 
point, stirring all the while. Strain through thin muslin 
or tarlatan, and when almost cold, put into a mould wet 
with cold water. Flavor with vanilla or lemon. 

Bavarian Cream ( Very fine). 

1 quart sweet cream. 

Yolks only of four eggs. 

^ oz. of gelatine or isinglass. 

1 cup (small) of sugar. 

2 teaspoonfuls vanilla or bitter almond extract. 

Soak the gelatine in just enough cold water to cover it, 
for an hour. Drain, and^tir into a pint of the cream 
made boiling hot. Beat the yolks smooth with the sugar, 
and add tlie boiling mixture, beaten in a little at a time. 
Heat until it begins to thicken, but do not actually boil ; 
remove it from the fire, flavor, and while it is still hot stir 
in the other pint of cream, whipped or churned in a sylla- 
bub churn to a stiff froth. Beat in this "whip," a spoon- 
ful at a time, into the custard until it is the consistency of 
sponge-cake batter. Dip a mould in cold watei*, pour in 
the mixture, and set on the ice to form. 

Snow Custard, t^ 

^ package Coxe's gelatine. 
3 eggs. 



CUSTAKDS, BLAIfC-MANGES ETC. 429 

1 pint miik. 

2 Clips of sugar 
Juice of one lemon. 

Soak the gelatine one hour in a teacnijful of cold water. 
To this, at the end of this time, add one j^int boiling water. 
Stir until the gelatine is thoroughly dissolved ; add two- 
thirds of the sugar and the lemon-juice. Beat the whites 
of the eggs to a stiff froth, and when the gelatine is quite 
cold, whip it into the whites, a spoonful at a time, for at least 
an hour. Whip steadily and evenly, and when all is stitF, 
pour into a mould, previously wet Avith cold water, and set 
in a cold jilace. In four or five hovirs turn into a glass 
dish. 

Make a custard of the milk, eggs, and remainder of the 
sugar, flavor with vanilla or bitter almond, and when the 
meringue is turned out of the mould, pour this around the 
base. 

Baked Custaud. 
1 quart of milk. 

4 eggs, beaten light — whites and yolks separately. 

5 tablespoonfuls sugar, mixed with the yolks. 
Nutmeg and vanilla. 

Scald but not boil the milk ; add by degrees to the 
beaten yolks, and when well mixed, stir in the Avhites. 
Flavor, and pour into a deep dish, or custard-cups of white 
stone-china, ^et these in a pan of hot water, grate nutmeg 
upon each, and bake until firm. Eat cold from the cups. 

French Tapioca Custard. »J< 

5 dessert spoonfuls tapioca. 

1 quart of milk. 

1 pint of cold water. 

3 eggs. 



4:30 COMMON SEKSE. 

1 teaspoonful vanilla, or other essence. 
1 heaping cup of sugar. 
A pinch of salt. 

Soak the tapioca in the water five hours. Let the milk 
come to a boil; add the tapioca, the water in which it waa 
boiled, and a good pinch of salt. Stir until boiling hot, and 
add gradually to the beaten yolks and sugar. Boil again 
{always in a vessel set within another of hot water), stir- 
ring constantly. Let it cook until thick, but not too long, 
as the custard will break. Five minutes after it reaches the 
boil will suffice. Pour into a bowl, and stir gently into the 
mixture the whites of the eggs, beaten to a stiff froth. 
Flavor, and set aside in a glass dish until very cold. 

Eat with an accompaniment of light cake and brandied, 
or canned peaches or pears. This will be found a very 
delightful dessert. 

Tapioca BLA^x'-MA^■GE. 

■|- lb. tapioca, soaked in a cup of cold water four hours. 

1 pint rich new milk, 
•f cup of sugar. 

2 teasjjoonfuls bitter almond or vanilla essence. 
A kittle salt. 

Heat the milk, and stir in the soaked tapioca. When 
it has dissolved, add the sugar. Boil slowly fifteen minutes, 
stirring all the time; take from the fire, and beat until 
nearly cold. Flavor and pour into a mould dipped in 
cold water. Turn out, and pour cold sweetened cream 
around it. 

Sago Blanc-mange. 

May be made in the same way as tapioca. 



CUSTABDS, BLANOMAlfGES, ETC. 431 

Cork-Starch Blanc-mange. ^ 

1 quart of milk. 

4 tablespoonfuls corn-starch, wet in a little cold wa- 
ter. 
3 eggs, well beaten — whites and yolks separately. 
1 cup of sugar. 

"Vanilla, lemon, or other essence. 
1 saltspoonful salt. 

Heat the milk to boiling ; stir in the corn starch and 
salt, and boil together five minutes (in a farina-kettle), then 
add the yolks, beaten light, with the sugar; boil two min- 
utes longer, stii-ring all the while ; remove the mixture from 
the fire, and beat in the whipped whites while it is boiling 
hot. Pour into a mould wet with cold water, and set in a 
cold place. Eat with sugar and cream. 

Farina Blanc-jiange 

Is made according to the above receipt, but boiled fif- 
teen minutes before the eggs are added. You may omit 
the eggs if you like, and only want a plain dessert. 

Arrowroot Blanc-mange, i^ 

3 cups of new milk. 

2^ tablespoonfuls of arrowi-oot, wet up with cold milk, 
f cup of sugar. 

"Vanilla, lemon, or bitter almond flavoring, with a little 
white wne. 

Mix the arrowroot to a smooth batter with one cup of 
the milk. Heat the remainder to boiling ; add the arrow- 
root, stirring constantly. When it begins to thicken put 
in the sugar, and cook ten minutes longer, still stirring it 
well from the sides and bottom. Take it ofi'; beat well five 



432 COMMON SENSE. 

minutes ; flav )r with the essence and a small wineglass of 
white wine. Give a hard final stir before putting it into a 
mould wet with cokl water. 

This is very nourishing for invalids and young cluldren. 
For the latter you may omit the wine. 

Almond Blanc-mange, i^ 

1 quai-t of milk. 

1 oz. Cooper's gelatine. 

3 ozs. of almonds, blanched and pounded in a mortar, 

with 
1 tables]>oonful of rose-water, added to prevent oiling. 
f cuj) sugar. 

Heat the milk to boiling, having previously soaked the 
gelatine in a cup of it for an hour. Turn in this when the 
milk is scalding hot ; add the pounded almond-jiaste, and 
stir all together ten minutes before putting in the sugar. 
When the gelatine has dissolved, remove the blanc-mange 
from the vessel of boiling water in which you have cooked it, 
and strain through a thin miislin bag, pressing it well to get 
out the flavor of the almonds. Tiiere should be three or 
four bitter ones among them. Wet a mould Avitli cold 
water, put in the blanc-mange, and set in a cold place until 
firm. 

You may make blanc-mange without the almonds, al- 
though it will not be so nice — and substitute vanilla for 
the rose-water. 

Neapolitan Blanc-mange. »J« 

Make according to the foregoing receipt, and, after strain- 
ing, separate into four difterent portions, allowing about a 
cupful of the mixture for each. Have ready 



CUSTAKDS. BLANC-MANGES, ETC. 4S3 

1 great tablesiioonful chocolate, Avet witli a veiy little 
boiling water, aud rubbed to a smootli jiaste, for the 
brown coloring. 

Yolk of an egg beaten light for the yellow. 

1 great tablespoonful currant jelly for the pink. 

Beat the chocolate into one portion, mixing it well ; the 
jelly into another, the egg into a third, returning this and 
that, flavored with chocolate, to the fire, and stirring until 
very hot, but not boiling. Leave the fourth uncolored. When 
quite cold and a little stiff, pour carefully into a wet moidd 
— the white first ; then the pink ; next the yellow ; and tha 
chocolate last. Of course, when the blanc-mange is turned 
out, this order of colors will be reversed. Set in a cold 
place. Loosen, when firm, by dipping the mould for a mo- 
ment in warm water, and working the top free from tht» 
edge with a few light touches of your fingers. This is a 
handsome dish and easily managed. Currant juice or cran- 
berry color a finer pink than jelly, but are apt to thin the 
blanc-mange, unless used cautiously. A little vanilla im- 
proves the chocolate. 

Jaune-maxge. *fl 

1 oz. Coxe's gelatine, soaked in half a cup cold wator 

one hour. 
1 c\ip of boiling water. 
Yolks of four eggs beaten very light. 
1 orange, juice and half the grated peel. 
1 lemon " and one-third the grated peel. 
1 cup white wine or clear pale sherry. 
1 cup powdered sugar and a good pincJi of cinnamon. 

Stir the soaked gelatine in the boiling water until dis- 
solved ; take from the fire and beat, a little at a time, into 
the yolks; x-etiirn to the inner saucepan with the sugar, 
19 



43i COMMON SENSE. 

oi'ange, lemon, and cinnamon. Stir over a clear fire until it 
is boiling hot ; put in the wine and strain through a hair- 
sieve or a piece of tarlatan. Set away in a mould wet 
with cold water. 

The success of this dish depends much upon the stiiTJng 
and the watchfulness of the cook. The mixtiu-e should not 
be allowed to boil at any moment. 

Velvet Blanc-iviange. »J« 

2 cups of sweet cream. 

^ oz. Cooper's gelatine, soaked in a very little cold water 

one hour. 
^ half cup white sugar (powdered). 
1 teaspoonful extract of bitter almonds. 
1 glass Avhite wine. 

Heat the cream to boiling, stir in the gelatine and sugar, 
and, so soon as they are dissolved, take from the fire. Beat 
ten minutes, or, what is better, churn in a syllabub-churn 
until very light ; flavor, and add by degrees the wine, mixing 
it in well. Put into moulds wet with cold water. 

Chocolate Blanc-jiange. 

1 quart of milk. 

1 oz. Cooper's gelatine, soaked in a cup of the milk one 

hour. 
4 heaping tablespoonfuls of grated chocolate, rubbed up 

with a little milk. 

3 eggs, whites and yolks beaten separately. 
f cup sugar and 2 teaspoonfuls of vanilla. 

Heat the milk to boiling ; pour in the gelatine and milk, 
and stir until it is dissolved ; add the sugar to the beaten 
yolks and stir until smooth] beat the chocolate into this, 



CUSTAKDS, BLANC-MANGEd, ETC. 435 

and pour in, spoonful by spoonful, the scalding milk upon 
the mixture, stirring all the while until all is in. Return 
to the inner saucepan and heat gently, stirring faithfully 
until it almost boils. Remove from fire, turn into a bowl, 
and whip in lightly and briskly the beaten whites with the 
vanilla. Set to form in moulds wet with cold water. 

Charlotte Russe. t^ 

1 lb. of lady's-fingers. 

1 quart rich sweet cream, 
f cup powdered sugar. 

2 teaspoonfuls vanilla or other extract. 

Split and trim the cakes, and fit neatly in the bottom 
and sides of two quart moulds. Whij) the cream to a stiff 
froth in a syllabub-churn when you have sweetened and 
flavored it ; fill the moulds, lay cakes closely together on 
the top, and set upon the ice until needed. 

Or, 
Yoit may use for this purpose a loaf of sponge-cake, cutting 
strips from it for the sides and leaving the crust for the bot- 
tom and top, each in one piece. 

A Tipsy Chaklotte. »J« 

1 large stale sponge-cake. 

1 pint rich sweet cream. 

1 cup sherry wine. 

•J oz. Cooper's gelatine, soaked in a cup of cold water two 

hours. 
1 teaspoonful vani]la or bitter almond extract. 
3 eggs, whites and yolks beaten together, but very lighti 
1 pint milk. 
1 cup sugar. 



436 COMMON SENSE. 

Heat the cream almost to boiling; put in the soaked 
gelatine and half a cup of sugar, and stir until dissolved, 
liemove from the fire, flavor, and, when cool, beat or churn 
to a standing froth. Cut off the top of the cake in one 
piece, and scoop out the middle, leaving tlie sides and bottom 
three-quarters of an inch thick. Over the inside of these 
pour the wine in spoonfuls, that all may be evenly moistened. 
Fill with the whipped cream, replace the top, which should 
also be moistened with wine and set in a cold placo imtil 
needed. 

Serve with it, or pour around it, a custard made of the 
eggs, milk, and the other half cup of sugar. 

Chocolate Charlotte Russe. 

^ oz. Cooper's gelatine, soaked in a very little cold 
wat'^>'. 

3 tablespoonfuls grated chocolate rubbed smooth in a 

little milk. 
■J cup powdered sugar. 

4 eggs. 

^ lb. sponge-cake. 
1 teaspoonful vanilla. 
1 pint cream. 

Heat the cream to boiling, slowly, stirring frequently ; 
add the sugar, chocolate, and gelatine, and, when these ai'O 
dissolved, add, a spoonful at a time, to the beaten yolks. 
Set back in the saucepan of boiling water, and stir five 
minutes, until very hot, but do not let it boil. Take it off, 
flavoi', and whip or churn to a standing froth, adding the 
beaten whites toward the last. Line a mould with sponge- 
cake, fill with the mixture, and set upon the ice. 



CUSTAitDS, BLANC-MAlfGES, ETC. 437 

Flummery. 

2 oz. almoiicls — a few bitter among them. 

1 tablespoonful orange-flower or rose-vvater. 

1 pint cream. 

1 oz. Cooper's gelatine, soaked one hour in one cup cold 

water. 
1 cup milk. 
•^ " sugar. 

Blanch the ahnonds, and, when cold, pound them to a 
paste in a Wedgewood mortar, adding orange-flower or rose- 
water to prevent oiling. Heat the inilh to boiling, put iu 
the gelatine, the sugar and almonds, and stir five minutes, 
or until they are thoroughly dissolved. Strain through 
thin muslin, pressing the cloth well. When cool, beat in 
the cream, a little at a time, with an egg-whip, or churn 
in a syllabub-churn imtil thick and stiff". Wet your mould, 
put in the mixture, and let it stand seven or eight houi'S in 
a cold place. 

Gelatine Charlotte Russe. ( Very nice.) 

1 pint of cream, whipped light. 
■^ oz. gelatine, dissolved in 1 gill of hot milk. 
Whites of 2 eggs, beaten to a stift" froth. 
1 small tea-cup of powdered sugar. 
Flavor with bitter almond and vanilla. 

"Mix. the cream, eggs, and sugar ; flavoi-., and beat in tho 
gelatine and milk last. It should be quite cold before it 
is added. 

Line a mould with slices of sponge-cake, or with lady's- 
fingers, and fill with the mixture. 

Set upon the ice to cool. 



438 common sense. 

"Whipped Syllabubs. 

1 pint of cream, ricli and sweet. 

■^ cup sugar, powdered. 

1 glass of wine. 

Vanilla or other extract, 1 large teaspoonful. 

Sweeten the cream, and, when the sugar is thoroughly 
dissolved, stir in the wine carefully with the flavoring ex 
tract, and churn to a strong froth. 

Heap in glasses, and eat with cake. 

Gooseberry Fool. 

1 quart of gooseberries, ripe. 

1 tablespoonfvd butter. 

1 cup of sugar. 

Yolks of four eggs. 

Meringue of whites, and 3 tablespoonfuls sugar. 

Stew the gooseberries in just water enough to cover 
them. When soft and broken, rub them through a sieve 
to remove the skins. While still hot beat in the butter, 
sugar, and the whipped yolks of the eggs. Pile in a glasa 
dish, or in small glasses, and heap upon the top a meringue 
of the whipped whites and sugar. 

Cream Meringues. 

4 eggs (the whites only), whipped stiff, with 1 lb. pow- 

dei-ed sugar. 
Lemon or vanilla flavoring. 

When very stiff', heap in the sliajie of half an ^gg upon 
stiff letter-paper lining the bottom of your baking-pan. 
Have them half an inch apart. Do not shut the oven- 
door closely, but leave a space through which you can 
watch them. When they are a light yellow-brown, take 



CUSTAKDS, BLANC-MANGES, ETC. 4C9 

them out and cool quickly. Slip a thin-bladed knife iiudet 
each ; scoop out the soft inside, and fill with cream whipped 
as for Charlotte Russe. 

They are very fine. The oven should be veiy hot. 

Calf's-Foot Jelly. 

4 calf's feet, cleaned carefully. 
4 quarts of watei". 

1 pint of wine. 

3 cups of sugar — or sweeten to taste. 
Whites of 3 eggs, well beaten. 

2 teaspoonfids of uiitmeg. 

Juice of 1 lemon, and half the grated peel. 

Boil the calf's feet in the water until it is reduced one- 
half; strain the liquor, and let it stand ten or twelve hours. 
Skim off every particle of the fat, and remove the dregs ; 
melt slowly in a porcelain or bell-metal kettle, add the sea- 
soning, sugar, and the whipped wliites of the eggs, and boil 
fast about twelve minutes, skimming well. Strain through 
a double flannel bag suspended between the four legs of an 
upturned high stool or backless chair, the bowl set beneath. 
Do not squeeze or shake it, until the jelly ceases to run freely ; 
then slip out the bowl, and put under another, into which 
you may gently press what remains. The first will be the 
clearer jelly, although the second dripping will taste quite 
as well. Wet your moulds, put in the jelly, and set in 
a cool place. 

There are still some hoiTsekeepers who insist that the 
jellies made from the modern gelatine are not comparable 
in beauty and flavor to those prepared from the genuine 
feet. Seeing means taste as well as belief with them, and 
when they handle and behold the beloved feet, they know 
what they ai-e about. Gelatine, they will darkly and dis- 



440 COMMON SENSE. 

gustfully assert, is made of born-sliavings and hoofs and tlie 
like, and no more fit to be used for cooking purposes than 
so much glue. 

Nevertheless, while gelatine is so clean, bright, and con- 
venient, housewives who find the days now but half as 
long as did their mothers, despite labor-saving machines, 
will turn a deaf ear to these alarmists, and escape the 
tedious process above-described by using the valuable sub- 
Btitute. 

Wine Jelly. ^J* 
2 lbs. sugar. 

1 pint of wine — pale sherry or wliite. 
1 pint of cold water. 
1 package Coxe's gelatine. 
Juice of two lemons and grated peel of one. 
1 quart of boiling water. 
1 good pinch of cinnamon. 

Soak the gelatine in the cold water one hour. Add to 
this the sugar, lemons, and cinnamon ; pour over all a quart 
of boiling water, and stir until the gelatine is thoroughly 
dissolved. Put in the wine, strain through a double flannel 
bag, without squeezing, wet your moulds with cold water, 
and set the jelly away in them to cool. 

Cider Jelly, i^ 

TVlay be made by the receipt just given, substituting a 
pint of clear, sweet cider for the wine. 

Fever patients may use cider jelly when wine is for- 
bidden, and they will find this both refreshing and nutri 
tious. 



custakds, blanc-manges, etc. 441 

Bird's Nest in Jelly. »J« 

1 quart of jelly, made according to either of the receipts 
just given, but with a cup less of boiling water, thai 
it maj"^ be very firm. 

3 cups of white blanc-mange. 

9 empty eggshells. 

Fresh riuds of two oranges. 

•J cup of sugar. 

Cut the rind from the oranges in long narrow strips, and 
Btew these gently in enough water to cover them until they 
are tender. Add to them half a cup of sugar, and simmer 
fifteen minutes longer in the syrup. Lay them out upon a 
dish to cool, taking cai'e not to break them. If you have 
preserved orange-peel in the house, it will serve you the 
trouble of preparing tliis. 

The blanc-mange should be made the day before you want 
it, and the eggshells filled. The original contents, yolk and 
white, should be poured out through a hole, not larger than 
a half-dime, in the small end, and the interior washed with 
pure water, shaken around well in them. Then fill with 
blanc-mange and set in a pan of flour or sugar — the open end 
up — that they may not be jostled or overturned. 

Next morning fill a glass dish two-thirds full of the jelly, 
which should be very clear, reserviiig a large cupful. Break 
the shells from about the blanc-mange, and lay the artificial 
eggs upon the jelly so soon as the latter is firm enough to 
bear them. Pile them neatly, but not too high in the mid- 
dle, bearing in mind that what is the top now will be the 
bottom when the jelly is turned out. Lay the orange peel, 
which represents straw, over these and around them. Warm 
the reserved jelly, so that it will flow readily, but do not 
get it hot ; pour over the straw and eggs, and set away in 
19* 



442 COMMON SENSE. 

a cold place to form. When firm, turn out upon a glasa 
dish or salver. 

This pretty and fanciful dish is yet easily made. Tlie 
materials are so simple and inexpensive, and the effect of the 
work, if deftly done, so pleasing, that I have no hesitation 
in calling the attention even of novices to it. 

Wine Jelly (boiled). 

1 box Coxe's gelatine, soaked in 1 pint of cold "water one 
hour. 

1 quart of boiling water poured over this, and stirred 

until the gelatine is dissolved. 
1^ lb. white sugar. 

2 lemons — juice and peel. 

1 pint of wine. 

Put all over the fire, boil up once well, and strain through 
a double flannel bag into moulds. 

Orange Jelly. 

2 oranges — juice of both and grated rind of one. 
1 lemon — juice and peel. 

1 package Coxe's gelatine, soaked in a very little water, 

one hour. 
1 pint boiling water. 
1^ cup sugar, and 1 small cup of wine. 
1 good pinch of cinnamon. 

Squeeze the juice of the fi-uit into a bowl, and put with 
them the grated peel and the cinnamon. Pour over them 
the boiling water, cover closely, and let them stand half an 
hour. Strain, add the sugar, let it come to a boil, stir in 
tht. gelatine, and, when this is well dissolved, take the sauce- 
pan from the fire. Sti'ain through a double flannel bag into 
moulds. 



ICE-CREAM AND OTHEK ICES. 443 

Variegated Jelly, t^ 

1 quart of clear jelly. 

■^ teaspoonful prei^ared cochineal or red currant juice. 

1 cup white blanc-mange. 

Divide the jelly into two equal portions, and color one 
with a veri/ little prepared cochineal, leaving the other as it 
is, of a jjale amber. Wet a mould with cold water and pour 
in a little of the latter. Set the mould in the ice, that the 
jelly may harden quickly, and so soon as it is firm pour in 
carefully some of the red. Set back upon the ice to get 
ready for the amber, adding the two colors in this order 
until you are ready for the base, which should be wider 
than the other stripes, and consist of the white blanc-mange. 
Keep both jelly and blanc-mange near the fire until you have 
filled the mould — T mean, of course, that intended for the 
latest layers. Let all get very firm before you turn it out. 

You may vary two moulds of this jelly by having the 
blanc-mange base of one colored with chocolate, a narrow 
white stripe above relieving the grave efi"ect of the brown. 

Ice-cream and other Ices. 

If you wish to prepare ice-cream ai an hour's notice, you 
cannot do better than to purchase the best patent freezer 
you can procui-e. I had one once which would freeze cream 
admirably in half an hour. I have forgotten the patentee's 
name, and perhaps this is well for him, since truth would 
oblige me to record an unlucky habit his machine had of 
getting out of order just when I Avanted it to do its best. 
My earliest recollections of ice-cream are of the discordant 
gi'inding of the well-worn freezer among the blocks of ice 
packed about it — a monotone of misery, that, had it been 
unrelieved by agreeable associa tions of the goo i to which it 



444 COMMON SENSE. 

was " leading up," would not have been tolerated out of 
Bedlam. For one, two, three, sometimes four hours, it went 
on without other variety than the harsher sounds of the fresh 
ice and the rattling " swash " as the freezer plunged amid 
the icy brine when these were nearly melted ; without ces- 
sation save when the unhappy operator nodded over his 
work, or was relieved by another predestined victim of lux- 
ury and ennui — a battalion of the laziest juveniles upon the 
place being detailed for this purpose. I verily believed in 
those days that the freezing could not be facilitated by 
energetic action, and used to think how fortunate it was 
that small darkeys had a predilection for this drowsy em- 
ployment. I shall never forget my amazement at seeing a 
brisk Yankee housewife lay hold of the handle of the pon- 
derous tin cylinder, and whirl it with such will and celerity, 
back and forth, back and forth, that the desired end came 
to pass in three-quai'ters of an hour. 

That day has gone by. Time has grown too precious 
now even to juvenile contrabands for them to sit half the 
day shaking a freezer under the locust-trees on the old 
plantation lawn. Machines that will do the work in one- 
tenth of the time, with one-fiftieth of the labor, are sold 
at every corner. But, so far as I know, it was reserved for 
a nice old lady up in the " Jersey " mountains — the tidiest, 
thriftiest, most cheerful bee I ever knew — to show her neigh- 
bors and acquaintances that ice-cream could be made to 
freeze itself. For five or six years I have practised her 
method, with such thankfulness to her, and such satisfaction 
to my guests and family, that I eagerly embrace the ctp- 
portunity of circulating the good news. 

Self-freezing Ice-cream. »J« 

1 quart rich milk. 

8 oggs — whites and yolks beaten separately and very light. 



ICE-CKEAM AND OTUEE ICES. 445 

4 cups sugar. 

3 pints rich sweet cream. 

5 teaspoonfuls vanilla or other seasoning, or 1 vanilla 

bean, bi-oken in two, boiled in the custard, and left 
in until it is cold. 

Heat the viilk almost to boiling, beat the yolks light, 
add the sugar, and stir up well. Pour the hot milk to this, 
little by little, beating all the while ; put in the frothed 
whites, and return to the fire — boiling in a pail or sauce- 
pan set within one of hot water. Stir the mixture steadily 
about fifteen minutes, or until it is thick as boiled custard. 
Pour into a bowl and set aside to cool. When quite cold, 
beat in the cream, and the flavoring, unless you have used 
the bean. 

Have ready a quantity of ice, cracked in pieces not larger 
than a pigeon egg — the smaller the better. You can manage 
this easily by laying a great lump of ice between two folds 
of coarse sacking or an old carpet, tucking it in snugly, 
and battering it, through the cloth, with a sledge-hammer or 
mallet until fine enough. There is no waste of ice, nor 
need you take it in your hands at all — only gather up the 
corners of the carpet or cloth, and slide as much as you 
want into the outer vessel. Use an ordinary old-fashioned 
upright freezer, set in a deep pail ; jiack aroixnd it closely, 
first, a layer of povmded ice, then one of rock salt — connnon 
salt will not do. In this order fill the pail ; but before cov- 
ering the freezer-lid, remove it carefully that none of the salt 
may get in, and, with a long wooden ladle or flat stick (I had 
one made on jjurpose), beat the custard as you would batter, 
for five minutes, without stay or stint. Replace the lid, pack 
the ice and salt upon it, patting it down hard on top ; cover 
all with several folds of blanket or carpet, and leave it for 
one hour. Then remove the cover of the freezer when 



44:6 COMMON SENSE. 

you have wiped it carefully outside. You will find within a 
thick coating of frozen custard upon the bottom and sides. 
Dislodge this with your ladle, which should be thin at the 
lower end, or with a long carving-knife, working every 
pai'ticle of it clear. Beat again hard and long until the 
custard is a smooth, half-congealed paste. The smoothness 
of the ice-cream depends upon yovu* action at this jiuicture. 
Put on the cover, pack in more ice and salt, and turn oif the 
brine. Spread the double carpet over all once more, having 
buried the freezer oiit of sight in ice, and leave it for three 
or four hours. Then, if the water has accumulated in such 
quantity as to buoy up the freezer, pour it off, fill up with 
ice and salt, but do not open the freezer. In two hours 
more you may take it from the ice, open it, wrap a towel, 
wrung out in boiling water, about the lower part, and turn 
out a solid column of cream, firm, close-grained, and smooth 
as velvet to the tongue. 

Should the ice melt very fast, you may have to turn off 
the water more than twice ; but this will seldom happen 
except in very hot weather. You need not devote fifteen 
minutes in all to the business after the custard is made. 
You may go into the cellar before breakfast, having made 
the custard overnight, stir in the cold cream and flavoring, 
get it into the freezer and comfortably jiacked down before 
John is through shaving, and by choosing the times for 
your stolen visits to the lower regions, surprise him and 
the children at a one-o'clock dinner by the most delicious 
dessert in the world. I have often laughed in my sleeve at 
seeing my John walk through the cellar in search of some 
mislaid basket or box, whistling carelessly, without a sus- 
picion that his favorite delicacy was coolly working out its 
own solidification under the inverted barrel on which I 
chanced to be leaning at his euti'ance. 

Any of the following receipts for custard ice-cream maj 



ICECKEAM AND OTHEK ICES. 447 

- be frozen in like manner. Do not spare salt, and be suro 
your ice is finely cracked, and after the second beating do 
not let the air again into the freezer. If yon cannot get dry 
rock salt, that which settles at the bottom of fish-barrels 
will do as well. Keep the freezer hidden, from first to last, 
by the ice heai)ed over it, except when you have to lift the 
lid on the occasions I have specified. 

Chocolate Ice-cream, i^ 

1 quart of cream. ' 

1 pint new milk. 

2 cups sugar. 

2 eggs beaten very light. 

6 tablespoonfuls chocolate rubbed smooth in a little milk. 

Heat the milk almost to boiling, and pour, by degrees, 
in with the beaten egg and sugar. Stir in the chocolate, 
beat well three minutes, and return to the inner kettle. 
Heat until it thickens well, stirring constantly; take from 
the fire and set aside to cool. Many think a little vanilla 
an improvement. When the custard is cold, beat in tho 
cream. Freeze. 

Almond Ice-cream. 

3 oz. sweet almonds and 1 oz. of bitter, blanched, and, 

when cold, pounded to a paste, a few at a time, 
in a Wedge wood mortar, adding 

2 tablespoonfuls of rosewater to prevent oiling. 

3 pints cream — fresh and sweet. 
Nearly 2 cups of sugar. 

1 tablespoonful of arrowroot, wet up with cold milk. 

Heat one pint cream almost to boiling, add the sugar, 
and when tliis is melted, the almonds. Simmer ten miuutes, 
Btirring often, remove from the fire, and let all stand to 



448 COMMON SENSE. 

gether ten minutes longer in a covered vessel. Strain out 
the cream, pressing the bag hard to get the full flavor of 
the almonds, return to the inner saucepan and stir in th* 
arrowroot until the cream thickens — say five minute?. 
When cold, beat very light with an egg-whip, adding grad- 
ually the rest of the cream. It should be light in half an 
hour. Then freeze. 

If you wish to mould your creams in fancy shapes, open 
your freezer two hours after the second stirring and trans- 
fer the cream to a tight mould, having given it a third 
vigorous beating. Pack this down in ice and salt, and let 
it stand two hours longer than you would have done had 
it remained in the freezer. 

Coffee Ice-cream. 

3 pints of cream. 

1 cvip black coffee — very strong and clear. , 

2 cups sugar. 

2 tablespoonfuls arrowroot, wet up with cold milk. 

Heat half the cream nearly to boiling, stir in the sugar, 
and, when this is melted, the coffee ; then the arrowroot. 
Boil all together five minutes, stirring constantly. When 
cold, beat up very light, whipping in the rest of the cream 
by degrees. Then freeze. 

I cannot say certainly that this can be frozen without 
turning, although I see no reason why it should not, since 
the arrowroot gives it the consistency of custard. 

Italian Cream. 

2 pints of cream. 

2 cups of sugar. 

2 lemons — juice and grated peel. 

2 tablespoonfuls of brandy. 



ICE-CKEAM AND OTHER ICES. 449 

Sweeten the cream and beat in the lemons gradually, 
not to curdle it; add the brandy and freeze in a patent 
freezer, or by turning quickly. In turning the freezer, open 
twice during the operation, to stir and beat the contents 
smooth. 

Lemox Ice-cream, *^ 

1 quart of cream. 

2 lemons — the juice of one and the grated peel of ong 

and-a-half. 
2 cups of sugar. 

Sweeten the cream, beat the lemon gradually into it, 
and put at once into the freezer. Freeze rapidly in a 
patent freezer, or the acid is apt to turn the milk. 

You may make orange ice-cream in the same way. 

Pine-apple Ice-cream. ^ 

1 quart of cream. 

1 large ripe pine-apple. 

1 lb. powdered sugar. 

Slice the pine-apple thin, and scatter the sugar between 
the slices. Cover it, and let the fruit steep three hours. 
Then cut, or chop it up in the syrup, and strain it through 
a hair sieve or bag of double coarse lace. Beat gradually 
into the cream, and freeze as rapidly as possible. 

You may, if you like, reserve a few pieces of pine-apple, 
xinsugared, cut into square bits, and stir them through the 
cream when half frozen. 

Peach Ice-cream »J« 

Is very nice made after the preceding receijot, with two or 
three handfuls of freshlj cut bits of the fruit stii-red in 
when the cream is half frozen. 



450 <x»mmon sense. 

Haspberry or Strawberry Ice-cream. ^J* 

1 quart ripe sweet Iberries. 

1 lb. svigar. 

1 quart fresh cream. 

Scatter lialf the sugar over tlie berries and let tliem 
stand three hours. Press and mash them, and strain them 
through a thin muslin bag. Add the rest of the sugar, 
and when dissolved beat in the cream little by little. 
Freeze rapidly, opening the freezer (if it is not a patent 
one) several times to beat and stir. 

Or, 

You may have a pint of whole berries, unsiigared, ready 
to stir in when the cream is frozen to the consistency of 
stiff mush. In tliis case add a cvip more sugar to the 
quart of crushed berries. 

Frozen Custard with the Fruit Frozen in. ►J* 

1 quart milk. 
1 quai-t cream. 

6 eggs, and 3 cups of sugar beaten up with the yolks. 
1 pint fresh peaches, cut up small, or fresh rij^e ber- 
ries. 

Heat the quart of milk almost to boiling, and add 
gradually to the beaten yolks and sugar. Whip in the 
frothed whites, return to the custard-kettle, and stir until 
it is a thick, soft custard. Let it get 2:)erfectly cold, beat in 
the cream and freeze. If you let it freeze itself, stir in the 
fruit after the second beating ; if you turn the freezer, when 
the custard is like congealed mush. 



ICE-CEEAM AND OTHER ICES. 451 

TuTTi Frutti Ice-cream. »J« 

1 pint of milk. 
1 quart of cream. 

Yolks of 5 eggs — ^beaten light witli the sugar. 
3 cups of sugar. 

1 lemon — juice and grated peel. 
1 glass of pale sherry, and ^ lb. crystallized fruits, 
chopped. 

Heat the milk almost to boiling ; pour by degrees over 
the eggs and sugar, beating all together well. Return to 
the fire, and hoil ten minutes, or until set into a good cus- 
tard. When cold, beat in the cream, and half freeze before 
you stir in half a pound of crystallized fruit — peaches, 
apricots, cherries, limes, etc., chopped very fine. Beat in 
with these the lemon and wine ; cover again, and freeze 
hard. 

In all fruit ice-creams the beating of the custard should 
be very hard and thorough, if you would have them smooth. 

Lemon Ice. ^ 

6 lemons — juice of all, and grated peel of three. 
1 large sweet orange — juice and rind. 
1 pint of water. 
1 " of sugar. 

Squeeze out every di-op of juice, and steep in it the rind 
of orange and lemons one hour. Strain, squeezing the 
bag dry; mix in the sugar, and then the Avater. Stir \inti] 
dissolved, and freeze by turning in a freezer — opening three 
times to beat all up together. 



452 COMMON BEN8B. 

Obange Ice. *J* 

6 oranges — juice of all, and grated peel of tliree- 

2 lemons — tlie j nice only. 

1 pint of sugar dissolved in 1 pint of water. 

Prepare and freeze as you would lemon ice. 

Pineapple Ice. 

1 juicy ripe pineap])le — peeled and cut small. 

Juice and grated peel of 1 lemon. 

1 pint of sugar. 

1 " water, or a little less. 

Strew the sugar over the pineapple and let it stand an 
hour. I\Iash all up together, and strain out the syrup 
through a hair-sieve. Add the water and freeze. 

Cherky Ice. 

1 quart cherries, with half the stones pounded in a 

Wedgewood mortar. 

2 lemons — the juice only. 

1 pint of watej, in which dissolve 1 pint of sugar. 
1 glass of fine brandy. 

Squeeze out the bruised cherries and stones, in a bag 
over the sugar; add the water, then the brandy, and 
fi-eeze. 

It will require a longer time to freeze than other iceS; 
on account of the brandy. 

Currant and Raspberry Ice (Fine). 

1 quart red currants. 

1 pint raspberries — red or white. 



EiPE FEurr roK dessekt. 453 

1 pint of water. 
1^ " of sugar. 

Squeeze out tlie juice; mix in the sugar and water, and 
freeze. 

Strawberry or Raspberry Ice. 

1 qr.art berries. Extract the juice and strain. 
1 pint sugar — dissolved in the juice. 
1 lemon — juice only. 
■J pint of water. 



RIPE FRUIT FOR DESSERT. 

Oranges 

May be put on whole in fruit-baskets, or the skin be 
cut in eighths half way down, separated from the fruit and 
curled inward, showing half the orange white, the other 
yellow. Or, pass a shaq> knife lightly around the fruit, 
midway between the stem and blossom end, cutting through 
the rind only. Slip the smooth curved handle of a tea- 
spoon carefully between the peel and body of the orange, 
and gently -work it all around until both upper and lower 
halves are free, except at stem and blossfjm. Turn the 
rind, without teai'ing it, inside out, making a white cup at 
either end — the round wliite fruit between them. 

Salade d'Orange. 

Pare and slice large sweet oranges ; sprinkle powdered 
siigar thickly over each slice, and j)our a couple of glasses 
of wine on the top. Sprinkle powdered sugar over all, 
and serve at once, or the fruit will lose its freshness. 

You may omit the wine if you like. 

Do not let any fruit intended to be eaten fresh for des 



454 



COMMON SENSE. 



sert lie in the sugar longer than is absolutely necessary, 
It extracts the flavor and withers the pulp. 

Ambrosia. 

8 fine sweet oranges, peeled and sliced. 

^ grated cocoanut. 

■^ cup powdered sugar. 

Arrange the orange in a glass dish, scatter the grated 
cocoanut thickly over it, sprinkle this lightly with sugar, 
and cover with another layer of orange. Fill up the dish 
in this order, having cocoanut and sugar for the top layer. 
Serve at once. 

Apples. 

Wash and polish with a clean towel, and pile in a china 
fruit-basket, with an eye to agreeable variety of color. 

Peaches and Pears. 

Pick out the finest, handling as little as may be, and 
pile upon a salver or flat dish, with bits of ice between 
them, and ornament with peach leaves or fennel sj)rigs. 

One of the prettiest dishes of fruit I ever saw upon a 
dessert-table "was an open silver basket, "wdde at the top, 
heaped with rich red peaches and yellow Bartlett pears, 
interspersed with feathery bunches of green, which few of 
those who admired it knew for carrot-tops. Wild white 
clematis wreathed the handle and showed here and there 
among the fruit, while scarlet and white verbenas nestled 
amid the green. 

Send around powdered sugar with the fruit, as many 
like to dip peaches and pears in it after paring and quar- 
tering them. 



EiPE FKurr roK desseet. 455 

Strawberries, Raspberries, and Blackberries. 

Never wash strawberries or raspberries that are intended 
to be eaten as fresh fruit. If they are so gritty as to require 
this 2)rocess, keep them off the table. You will certainly 
ruin the flavor beyond repair if you wash them, and as cer- 
tainly induce instant fermentation and endanger the coats 
of the eaters' stomachs, if, after profaning the exquisite deli- 
cacy of the friiit to this extent, you complete the evil work 
by CO vei'ing them with sugar, and leaving them to leak their 
lives sourly away for one or two hours. 

Put them on the table in glass dishes, piling them high 
and lightly, send around powdered sugar with them and 
cream, that the guests may help themselves. It is not eco- 
nomical perhaps, but it is a healthful and pleasant style of 
serving them — I had almost said the only decent one. 

" But I don't know who picked them ! " cries Mrs. 
Fussy. 

No, my dear madam ! nor do you know who makes the 
baker's bread, or confectioner's cakes, creams, jellies, salads, 
etc. Nor, for that matter, how the flour is manufactured 
out of which you conjure your dainty biscuit and pies. I 
was so foolish as to go into a flour-mill once, and having 
seen a burly negro, naked to the waist, with his troiTsers 
rolled up to his knees, stand in a bank of " fine family 
flour," a foot deep in the lowest part, on a July day, shovel- 
ling it into barrels for the market, I rushed into the outer 
oil* a sicker and a wiser woman. 

.1 know God made strawberries. " Doubtless," says 
Bishop Butler, " He could have made a better berry, but 
IIr never did ! " The picker's light touch cannot mar flavor 
or beauty, nor, were her fingers filthy as a chimney-sweep's, 
could the delicate fruit suffer from them as from your bar- 
barous baptism. You would like to know who picked them. 



456 COMMON SENSE, 

I slioiilcl inquire instead, " Who washed them, and in what? " 
I recollect seeing a housekeeper, who was aihicted with 
your inquiring turn of miud, wash strawberries iu a wash: 
hand basin ! 

Currants and Raspberries. 

Pick the currants from the stems, and mix with an equal 
qiiantity of raspberries. Put into a glass bowl, and eat with 
powdered sugar. 

Frosted Currants. 

Pick fine even bunches, and dij) them, one at a time, into 
a mixture of frothed white of egg, and a very little cold 
water. Drain them until nearly dry, and roll in pulverized 
sugar, llepeat the dip iu the sugar once or twice, and lay 
them upon white paper to dry. They make a beautiful 
garuish for jellies or charlottes, and look well heaped in a 
dish by themselves or \\ith other fruit. 

Plums and grapes are very nice frosted in the same 
way. 



PRESERVES AND FRUIT JELLIES. 

Use none but porcelain, or good bell-metal kettles for 
preserves and jellies If the latter, clean thoroughly just 
before you put in the syrup or fruit. Scour with sand, 
then set it over the fire, with a cupful of vinegar and a large 
handful of salt in it. Let this come to a boil, and scour the 
whole of the inside of the kettle with it. Do not let your 
preserves or anything else stand one moment in it after it 
is withdiawn from the fire ; fill the emptied kettle instantly 
with water and wash it perfectly clean, although you maj 
mean to return the syrup to it again in five minutes. By 
observing these precautious, preserves an I pickles made ia 



PKESEKVES AND FIIUIT JELLIES. 457 

bell-metal may be rendered as good and wholesome as if 
the frailer porcelain be used. 

Use only fine sugar for nice preserves. Moist or dark 
sugar cannot be made to produce tlie same effect as dry 
white. 

Do not hurry any needful step in the process of preserv- 
ing. Prepare your fruit with care, weigh accurately, aiid 
allow time enough to do your woi'k well. Put up the jn-e- 
serves in small jars in prefei/ence to large, and, when once 
made, keep them in a cool, dark closet that is perfectly 
dry. Keep jellies in small stone china jars, or glass tvim- 
blers closely covered. You can procure at most china and 
glass stores, or house-furnishing establishments, metal 
covers with elastic rims for these, which can be used from 
year to year. 

Cover jellies and jams with tissue paper, double and 
wet with brandy, pressed closely to the conserve before yo\i 
put on the lid, or paste on the thick jiaper. Examine your 
shelves frequently and narrowly for a few weeks to see if 
your preserves are keeping well. If there is the least sign 
of fei'mentation, boil them over, adding more sugar. 

If jellies are not so firm after six or eight hours as you 
would have them, set them in the sun, with bits of window 
glass over them to keep out the dust and insects. Remove 
these at night and wipe off the moisture collected on the 
under side. Repeat this every day until the jelly shrinks 
into firmness, filling up one cup from another as need re- 
quires. This method is far preferable to boiling down, 
which both injures the fiavor and darkens the jelly. 

Preserved Peaches. »\i 

Weigh the fruit after it is pared and the stones ex- 
tracted, and allow a pound of sugar to every one of peaches. 
Crack one quaiter of the stones, extract the kernels, break 
'20 



458 COMMON SENSE. 

them to pieces and boil in just enougli water to cover them, 
until soft, when set aside to steep in a covered vessel. Put 
a layer of sugar at the bottom of the kettle, then one of 
fruit, and so on until you have used up all of both ; set it 
where it will warm slowly until the sugar is melted and the 
fruit hot through. Then strain the kernel-water and add 
it. Boil steadily until the peaches are tender and clear. 
Take them out with a perforated skimmer and lay ixpon 
large flat dishes, crowding as little as possible. Boil the 
syriip almost to a jelly — that is, until clear and thick, skim- 
ming off all the scum. Fill your jars two-thii-ds full of the 
peaches, pour on the boiling syrup, and, when cold, cover 
■with brandy tissue-paper, then with cloth, lastly with thick 
paper tied tightly over them. 

The peaches should be ready to take oflf after half an 
hour's boiling ; the syrup be boiled fifteen minutes longer, 
fast, and often stirred, to throw up the scvmi. A few slices 
of pineapple cut tip with the peaches flavor them finely. 

Peeserveb Pears 

Are \)\\t up precisely as are peaches, but are only pared, not 
divided. Leave the stems on. 

Peach Marmalade. »J« 

Pare, stone, and weigh the fruit ; heat slowly to draw 
out the juice, stirring up often from the bottom with a 
wooden spoon. After it is hot, boil quickly, still stirring, 
three quarters of an hour. Add, then, the sugar, allowing 
three quarters of a pound to each pound of the fruit. Boil 
up well for five minutes, taking ofl" every particle of scum. 
Add the juice of a lemon for every three pounds of fruit, 
and the water in which one-fourth of the kernels have been 
l)oiled and steej)ed. Stew all together ten minutes, stirring 



Pl-ESEKVES AND FKUIT JELLIES. 459 

to a smooth paste, and take from the Rre. Put up hot in 
air-tight cans, or, when cokl, in small stone or glass jars, 
with brandied tissue-paper fitted neatly to the surface of the 
marmalade. 

A large, ripe pineapple, pared and cut up fine, and stix*- 
red with the peaches, is a fine addition to the flavor. 

Pkeserved Quinces, t^ 

Choose fine yellow quinces. Pare, quarter, and core 
them, saving both skins and cores. Put the quinces over 
the fire with just enough water to cover them, and simmer 
until they are soft, but not until they begin to break. Take 
them o\it carefully, and spread them ujion broad dishes to 
cool. Add the parings, seed, and cores, to the water in 
which the quinces were boiled, and stew, closely covered, 
for an hour. Strain through a jelly-bag, and to every pint 
of this liquor allow a pound of sugar. Boil up and skim it, 
put in the fruit and boil fifteen minutes. Take all from the 
fire and pour into a lax'ge deep pan. Cover closely and let 
it stand twenty-four hours. Drain oflf the syrup and let it 
come to a boil; put in the quinces carefully and boil another 
quai-ter of an hour. Take them up as dry as possible, and 
again spread out upon dishes, setting these in the hottest 
sunshine you can find. Boil the syrup until it begins to 
jelly; fill the jars tsvo-thirds full and cover with the syrup. 
The preserves should be of a fine red. Cover with brandied 
tissue-paper. 

Preserved Apples. 

Firm, well-flavored pippins or bell-flower apples make 
an excellent preserve, prepared in the same manner as 
quinces. A few quinces cut up among them, or the juice 
of two lemons to every three pounds of friit, improves 
them. 



4:60 COMMON SENSE. 

Quince Marmalade. »J« 

Pare, core, and slice the quinces, stewing the skins, coi'cs, 
and seed in a vessel by themselves, with just enough water 
to cover them. When this has simmered long enough to 
extract all the flavor, and the parings are broken to pieces, 
strain off the water through a thick cloth. Put the quinces 
into the preserve-kettle when this water is almost cold, pour 
it over them and boil, stirring and mashing the fruit with 
a wooden spoon as it becomes soft. The juice of two 
oranges to every three poimds of the fruit imparts an agree- 
able flavor. When you have reduced all to a smooth paste, 
stir in a scant three-quarters of a pound of sugar for every 
pound of fruit; boil ten minutes more, stirring constantly. 
Take off", and when cool put into small jars, with brandied 
papers over them. 

Quince Cheese 

Is marmalade boiled down very thick, packed into small 
pots. It will turn out firm as cheese, and can be cut in 
slices for luncheon or tea. 

Apple Butter. 

This is generally made by the large quantity. 

Boil down a kettleful of cider to two-thirds the origi- 
nal quantity. Pare, core, and slice juicy apples, and put as 
many into the cider as it will cover. Boil slowly, stirring 
often with a flat stick, and when the apples are tender to 
breaking, take them out with a perforated skimmer, di'ain- 
ing well against the sides of the kettle. Put in a second 
Bup})ly of apples and stew them soft, as many as the cider 
will hold. Take from the fire, pour all together into a tub 
or large crock ; cover and let it stand twelve hours. Then 
retui'n to the kettle and boil doMTn, stirring ill the while 



PKESEKVES AND FRUIT JELLIES. 40 1 

until it is the consistency of soft soap, and bx-own in color 
you may spice to taste if you please. 

Keep in stone jars in a dry, cool place. It should keep 
all winter. 

Pbeserved Crab-apples. »J« 

The red Siberian crab is best for this purpose. Pick 
out those that are nearly perfect, leaving the stems on, and put 
into a pi'eserve-kefclle, with enough warm water to cover 
them. Heat this to boiling, slowly, and simmer until the 
skins break. Drain and skin them; then, with a penknife, 
extract the cores tlu-ough the blossom ends. Weigh them ; 
allow a pound and a quai'ter of sugar and a teacupful of 
water to every pound of fruit. Boil the water and sugar 
together until the scum ceases to rise ; put in the fruit, cover 
the kettle, and simmer until the apples are a clear red, and 
tender. Take out with a skimmer ; spread upon dishes 
to cool and harden ; add to the syrup the juice of one lemon 
to tliree pounds of fruit, and boil until clear and rich. Fill 
your jars three-quarters full of the apples, pour the syrup 
in, and, when cool, tie up. 

Preserved Greex-gages and Large Purple Plums. »J« 

Weigh the fruit and scald in boiling water to make 
the skins come ofi' easily. Let them stand in a large bowl 
an hour after they are peeled, that the juice may exude. 
Di'ain this ofFj lay the plums in the kettle, alternately 
vrith layoi-s of sugar, allowing pound for pound ; pour the 
juice over the top aud heat slowly to a boil. Take out the 
plums at this point, very carefully, with a perforated skim- 
mer, draining them well through it, and spread upon broad 
dishes in the sun. Boil the syrup until thick and clear, 
Bkinmiing it faithfully. Return the plums to this, and boil 
ten minutes. Spread out again until cool and firm ; keep 



d62 \ COMMON SEN8R. 

ing the syinip hot on the fire, fill your jars three-quarters 
full with the fruit ; pour on the scalding syrup, cover to 
keep in the heat, and, when cold, tie up. 

Or, 

If you do not care to take the trouble of peeling the 
fruit, prick it in several places with a needle, and proceed 
as directed. 

Unique Preserves. 

Gather young cucumbers, a little longer than youi 
middle finger, and lay in strong brine one week. 
Wash them and soak a day and a night in fair water, 
changing this four times. Line a bell-metal kettle with 
vine-leaves, lay in the cucumbers, with a little alum scat- 
tered among them ; fill up with clear water ; cover with 
vine-leaves, then with a close lid, and green as for pickles. 
Do not let them boil. When well greened, drop in ice- 
water. When perfectly cold, wipe, and with a small knife 
slit down one side ; dig out the seeds ; stuff with a mixtui-e 
of chopped raisins and citron ; sew up the incision with 
fine thread. Weigh them, and make a sjTup, allowing a 
pound of sugar for every one of cucumbers, with a pint 
of water. Heat to a lively boil, skim, and drop in the 
fruit. Simmer half an hour, take out and spread upon 
a dish in the sun while you boil down the syrup, with a 
few slices of ginger-root added. When thick, put in the 
cucumbers again ; simmer five minutes and put up in glass 
jars ; tying them up when cold. 

An odd, but also a singulaily delicious sweetmeat. 

Damsons 

Are put up in the same manner as plums, but pricked, 
instead of skinned. 



PRESERVES AND FEUIT JELLIES. 468 

Preserved Orange Peel. ( Ver2/ nice.) 

Weigli the oranges whole, and allow pound for pound. 
Peel the oranges neatly and cut the rind into narrow shreds. 
Boil until tender, changing the water twice, and replenish- 
ing with hot from the kettle. Squeeze the strained jviice 
of the oranges over the sugar ; let this heat to a boil ; put 
in the shreds and boil twenty minutes. 

Lemon peel can be preserved in the same way, allowing 
more sugar. 

Orange Marmalade. 

Allow pound for 2)0und. Pare half the oranges and cut 
the rind into shreds. Boil in tkree waters until tender, 
and set aside. Grate the rind of the remaining oranges ; 
take off and throw awayevery bit of the thick white inner 
skin ; quarter all the oranges and take out the seeds. 
Chop, or cut them into small pieces ; drain all the juice 
that will come away, without jiressing them, over the sugar ; 
heat this, stirring until the sugar is dissolved, adding a veri/ 
little water, unless the oranges are very juicy. Boil and 
skim five or six minutes ; put in the boiled shreds, and 
cook ten miniites ; then the chopped fruit and grated peel, 
and boil twenty minutes longer. When cold, put into small 
jars, tied up with bladder or with paper next the fruit, 
cloths dipped in Avax over all. A nicer way still is to put 
away in tumblers with self-adjusting metal tops. Press 
braudied tissue-pajjer down closely to the fruit. 

Lemon Marmalade. 

Is made as you would prepare orange — allowing a pound 
and a quarter of sugar to a pound of the fruit, and using 
but half the grated peel. 



464 COJEMON SENSK. 

Preserved Pineapple. *^ 

Pare, cut into slices, take oiit the core of each one, and 
weigh, allowing pound for pound of sugai- and fruit. Put 
in alternate layers in the kettle and pour in water, allowing 
a teacupful to each pound of sugar. Heat to a boil ; take 
out the })ineapple and spread upon dishes in the sun. 
Boil and skim the syrup half an hour. Return the. pine- 
apple to the kettle and boil fifteen minutes. Take it out, 
pack in wide-moiithed jars, poiir on the scalding syruj) ; 
cover to keep in the heat, and, when cold, tie up, fii-st put- 
ting hrandied tissue-paper upon the top. 

Pineapple Marmalade. 

Pare, slice, core, and weigh the pineapple ; then cut 
into small bits. ]\Iake a syrup of a teacup of water to two 
pounds of sugar ; melt, and heat to a boil. Heat the 
chopped pineapple in a vessel set within one of boiling 
water, covering it closely to keep in the flavor. When it 
is smoking hot all through, and begins to look clear, add 
to the syrup. Boil together half an houi-, stiri'ing all the 
while, or until it is a clear, bright paste. 

Preserved Citron or Water-melon Rind. 

Pare off the green skin, and the soft, wliite, inner 
rind. Cut into strips or into fanciful shapes. Allow a 
pound and a quarter of sugar to each pound of rind. 
Line your kettle with vine-leaves and fill with the rind, 
scattering a little pulveri2;ed alum over each layer. Cover 
with vine-leaves, three thick ; pour on water enough to reach 
and wet these, and lay a close lid on the top of the kettle. 
Let all steam together for three hours ; but the water 
must not actually boil. Take out your rind, which 



PRESERVES AND FRUIT JELLIES. 465 

should bo well greened by this process, and throw at cnce 
into very cold water. It should lie in soak, changing the 
water every hour, for four hours. 

For the syi'up, allow two cups of water to a pound and 
a quarter of sugar. Boil, and skim it until no more scum 
comes up ; put in the rind, and simmer gently nearly an 
hour. Take it out, and spread upon dishes in the sun 
until firm and almost cool. Simmer in the syrup for half 
an hour ; spread out again, and, when firm, put into a large 
bowl, and pour over it the scalding syrup. 

Twelve hours later put the syrup again over the fire, 
adding the juice of a lemon and a tiny strip of ginger-root 
for every pound of rind. Boil down until thick ; pack the 
rind in jars and pour over it the syrup. Tie up when 
cool. 

A veiy handsome sweetmeat, although rather insipid in 
flavor. The reader can judge whether, as the charity boy 
said of the alphabet, and the senior Weller of matrimony, 
it is worth while to go through so much and get so little. 

Preserved Ginger. >fp 

Pare the roots of green ginger and lay in cold water fif- 
teen minutes. Boil in three waters, changing the hot for 
cold every time, until very tender ; drain, and lay in ice- 
water. For the syrup, allow a pound and a quarter of 
sugar for every pound of ginger, and a cupful of water for 
oach pound of sugar. Boil, and skim until the scum ceases 
to rise. When the syrup is cold, wipe the ginger dry and 
drop it in. Let it stand twenty-four hovirs. Drain off and 
reheat the syrup. This time put the ginger in when blood 
warm. Do not look at it again for two days. Then reboil 
the syrup, and pour over the ginger scalding hot. In a 
week drain off once more, boil, and add again while hot to 
20* 



4.6Q COMMON SENSE. 

the ginger ; co^ er closely. It will be fit foi' use iii a fort^ 
night. 

Preserved Cherries, ^fi 

Stone the cherries, preserving every drop of juice. 
"Weigh the fruit, allowing pound for pound of sugar. Put 
a layer of fruit for one of sugar until all is used up ; pour 
over the juice and boil gently until the syrup begins to 
thicken. 

The short-stem red cherries or the Morellas are best for 
preserves. Sweet cherries will not do. 

Preserved Strawberries. ^J* 

Pound for pound. Put them in a preserving kettle over 
a slow fire until the sugar melts. Boil twenty-five minutes, 
fast. Take oiit the fruit in a perforated skimmer and fill 
a number of small cans three-quarters full. Boil and skim 
the syrup five minutes longer, till up the jars, and seal while 
hot. 

Keep in a cool, dry place. 

Strawberry Jam. *J« 

For every pound of fruit three-quarters of a pound of 
sugar. 

1 pint red cxirrant juice to every 4 pounds strawber- 
ries. 

Boil the juice of the currants with the strawberries half 
an hour, stirring all the time. Add the sugar, and boil 
up rapidly for about twenty minutes, skimming carefully. 
Put in small jars, with brandied tissue-paper over the top. 

You can omit the currant juice, but the flavor will not 
be so fine. 



PEE8EKVE3 AND FKUIT JELLIES. 467 

Raspberry Jam. ►f* 

f lb. of sugar to every lb. fniit. 

Put the fi'uit on alone, or with the addition of a pint of 
currant juice to every fovir povmds of fruit. Boil half an 
hour, mashing and stirring well. Add the sugar, and cook 
twenty minutes more. Blackberry jam is very nice made 
as above, leaving out the currant juice. 

Gooseberry Jam 

Is made in the same manner as raspberry, only the cur- 
rant juice is omitted, and the gooseberries boiled one hour 
without the fruit, and another after it is put in. The fruit 
must be ripe. 

Ripe Tomato Preserves. s|< 

7 lbs. round yellow, or egg tomatoes — ^yeeZfJcZ. 
7 lbs. sugar, and juice of 3 lemons. 

Let them stand together over night. Drain off the syrup 
and boil it, skimming well. Put in the tomatoes and boil 
gently twenty minutes. Take out the fruit with a perfo- 
rated skiumier, and spread ujion dishes. Boil the syrup 
do^^^l until it thickens, adding, just before you take it up, 
the juice of three lemons. Put the frviit into the jars and 
fill up with hot syrvip. When cold, seal or tie up. 

» Green Tomato Preserves. {Good.) 

8 lbs. small green tomatoes. Pierce each with a fork. 

7 lbs. sugar. 

4 lemons — tlie juice only. 

1 oz. ginger and mace mixed. 

Heat all together slowly, and boil until the fruit ia 
clcMir. Take it from the kettle in a perforated skimmer, 



468 COMMON SENSE. 

and spread vipon dishes to cool. Boil tlie syrup thick. Pui 
the fruit into jars and cover with hot sjrxip. 

Preserved Figs. »J* 

The weight of ripe figs iii sugar. 
Peel of one lemon and juice of two. 
A little ginger. 

Cover the figs with cold water for twelve hours. Then 
simmer in water enough to cover them imtil tender, and 
spread out upon a sieve to cool and hai'den. Make a syrup 
of the s\;gar, and a cup of cold Avater for every pound. 
Boil until clear of scum ; put in the figs and simmer ten 
minutes. Take them out and spread tipon dishes in the 
sun. Add the lemons and ginger ; boil the syrup thick ; 
give the figs another boil of fifteen minutes, and fill the 
jars three-quarters of the way to the top. Pill up with 
boiling syrup, cover, and, when cold, seal up. 

Baked Apples. ^J* 

Cut out the blossom end of sweet apples— Campfields or 
Pound Sweets — with a sharp penknife ; wash, but do not 
pare them ; pack them in a large pudding-dish ; pour a cup- 
ful of water in the bottom, cover closely with another dish 
or pan ; set in a moderate oven, and steam iintil tender all 
through. Pour the liquor over them Avhile hot, and repeat 
this as they cool. Set on the ice several hours before tea, 
and, when you are ready, transfer them to a glass dish, 
pouring the juice over them again. Eat with jiowdered 
sugar and cream. Apples baked in this way are more ten- 
der and digestible, and better flavored, than those baked in 
on open vessel. Campfields are particularly good. 



PEESEftVES AjSID FRUIT JELLIE3. 469 

Apples Stewed Whole. »^ 

Pare, and with a small knife extract the cores of fine 
juicy apples that are not too tart ; put in a deep dish with 
just enough water to cover them; cover and bake, or stew, 
in a moderate oven, until they are tender and clear ; take 
out the apples, put in a bowl, and cover to keep hot ; piit 
the juice into a saucepan, with a cupful of sugar for twelve 
apples, and boil half an hour. Season with mace, ginger, 
or whole cloves, adding the spice ten minutes before you 
remove the syrup from the fire. Pour scalding over the 
apples, and cover until cold. 

Eat with cream. 

Baked Pears. 

Sweet peai'S may be baked just as sweet apples are- - 
\ e.y steamed without being pared or cored. 

Or, 

if large, cut in half, put into a deep dish, with a very 
little water ; sprinkle them with sugar, and piit a few 
cloves, or bits of cinnamon, or a pinch of ginger among 
them. Cover closely, and bake until tender. 

Stewed Pears, »{« 

If small and ripe, cut out the blossom-end, without 
paring or coring ; put into a saucepan, with enough water 
to cover them, and stew until tender ; add a half cupful 
of sugar for every quart of pears, and stew all together ten 
minutes ; take out the pears, lay in a covered bowl to keep 
warm ; add to the syrup a little ginger or a few cloves ; 
boil fifteen minutes longer, and pour over the fruit hot. 



470 COMMON SENSE. 

Or, 

If tlie peais are uot quite ripe, but hard and disposed 
to be tough, peel them, cut out the blossom-end, leaving on 
the stems, and stew until tender in enough water to cover 
them. Take them out, set by in a covered dish to keep 
warm ; add to the liquor in the saucepan an equal quantity 
of the best molasses and a little ginger ; boil half an hour, 
skim, and return the pears to the saucepan. Stew all to- 
gether twenty minutes, and pour out. 

These are very good, and will keep a week or more^ 
even in warm weather. I have canned them while boiling 
hot, and kept them sweet a whole year. 

Baked Quinces. 

Pare and quarter ; extract the seeds and stew the fruit 
in clear water until a straw will pierce them ; put into a 
baking-dish with a half cupful of sugar to every eight 
quinces ; pour over them the liquor in which they were 
boiled; cover closely, and steam in the oven one hour; take 
out the quinces, lay them in a covered bowl to keep warm ; 
return the syrup to the saucepan, and boil twenty minutes ; 
pour over the quinces, and set away covered to cool. 

Eat cold. 



FRUIT JELLIES. 
Currant, Blackberry, Strawberry, etc. »Ja 

Put the fniit into a stone jar ; set this in a kettle of 
tepid water, and jiut it upon the fire. Let it boil, closely 
covered, until the fruit is broken to pieces ; strain, pressing 
the bag (a stout coarse one) hard, putting in but a few 
handfuls at a time, and between each squeezing turning it 



FKUIT JELLIES. 471 

in si do out to scald off tlie pulp and skins. To each pint of 
juice allow a pound of sugar. Set the juice on alone to 
boil, and while it is warming divide the sugar into several 
different portions, and put into shallow pie-dishes or pans that 
will fit in your ovens ; heat in these, opening the ovens now 
and then to stir it and prevent burning. Boil the juice 
just twenty vihiutes from the moment it begins faii-ly to boil. 
By this time the sugar should be so hot you cannot bear 
yonr hand in it. Should it melt around the edges, do not 
be alarmed. The burned parts will only form into lumps 
in the syrup, and can easily be taken out. Throw the sugar 
into the boiling juice, stirring rapidly all the while. It 
will "hiss" as it falls in, and melt very quickly. With- 
draw your spoon when you are sui-e it is dissolved. Let 
the jelly just come to a boil, to make all certain, and take 
the kettle instantly from the fire. Eoll your glasses or 
cups in hot water, and fill with the scalding liquid. If 
these directions be strictly followed, and the fruit is at the 
jjroper state of ripeness, there need be no dread of failure. 
I have often had the jelly "form" before I filled the last 
glass. 

I wish it were in my power, by making known the ad- 
vantages of the process I have described, to put an end to 
the doubts and anxieties attendant upon the old-fashioned 
method of boiling jelly into a presei-ve. This plan is so 
simple and safe, the jelly made so superior in flavor and 
color to that produced by boiling down juice and fruit, that 
no one who has ever tried both ways can hesitate to give it 
the preference. I have put np jelly in no other way for 
twelve years, and have never failed once. 

Strawberry jelly should have a little lemon-juice added 
to that of the fruit. Both it and blackberry, and very ripe 
raspben-y jelly, are apt to be less firm than that made 
from more tart fruits ; still, do not boil it. Set it in the 



472 COMMON SENSE. • 

sun, as I have directed at the beginning of the section upon 
preserves and fruit jellies, filling one cup from another as 
the contents shrink. The sun will boil it down with less 
waste, and less injury to color and taste, than the fire will 
Cooking jelly always darkens it. 

l*ut brandied tissue-paper over the top of each glass 
when cold and firm, paste a thick paper over it, and keep 
in a dry place. 

Raspberry and Currant Jelly. *J« 

To two parts red raspberries or " Blackcaps," put one 
of red currants, and proceed as with other berry jelly. 

The flavor is exquisite. This jelly is especially nice for 
cake. 

"Wild Cherry and Currant Jelly. *^ 

Two-thirds wild cherries (stones and all) and one of red 
currants. A pound of sugar to a pint of juice, and make as 
you do plain currant j elly . 

This, besides being very palatable and an excellent table 
jelly, is highly medicinal, good for coughs and any weak- 
ness of the digestive organs. I put it up first as an experi- 
ment, and because I chanced to have the cheri-ies. Now I 
would not pass the winter without it, unless obliged to do 
so by a failure of the fruit crop. 

Peach Jelly. oJ* 

Ci'ack one-third of the kernels and put them in the jar 
with the peaches, which should be pared, stoned, and 
sliced. Heat in a pot of boiling water, stirring from time 
to time until the fruit is well broken. Strain, and to every 
pint of peach juice add the juice of a lemon. Measure 
again, allowing a pound of sugar to a pint of liquid. Heat 
the sugar very hot, and add when the juice has boiled 



QAiroED FKUITS AND VEGETABLES. 473 

twenty minutes. Let it come to a boil, and take instantly 
from the fire. 

This is very fine for jelly-cake. 

Green Fox Grape Jelly »J« 

Is made after the receipt for currant jelly, only allowing 
a pound and a half of sugar to a pint of juice, 
liipe gi'apes require but pound for pint. 

Quince Jelly, i^ 

Pare and slice the qiiinces, and add for every five poun(/3 
of fruit a cup of water. Put ])eelings, cores, and all into a 
stone jar ; set this in a pot of boiling water, and, when the 
fi-uit is soft and broken, proceed as witU other jellies. 

CitAB-APPLE Jelly. ^ 

Cut Siberian crab-ap[)les to pieces, but do not pare or 
remove the seeds. The latter impart a peculiarly pleasant 
flavor to the fruit. Put into a stone jar, set in a pot of hot 
water, and let it boil eight or nine hours. Leave in the j«ir 
all night, covered closely. Next morning, squeeze out the 
juice, allow pound for pint, and manage as you do currant 
jelly. 

Bhould the apples be very dry, add a cup of water for 
every six pounds of fruit. 

There is no finer jelly than tliia in appearance and in 
taste. 



CANNED FRUITS AND VEGETABLES. 

Within a few years canned fruits have, in a great 
measure, jniparseded preserves. They are cheaper, more 
wholesoEia, a' d far less difficult to prepare. Attention tc 



4T4 COM>ION SENSE. 

a few general rules "will insure sviccess to e"\ ery housekeepei 
who sensibly prefers to put up her o^vn season's supply 
of these to purchasing those for double the cost, which are 
not nearly so good. 

First, examine cans and elastics narrowly before you 
begin operations. See that the screw is in order, the can 
without crack or nick, the elastic firm and closely fit- 
ting. 

Secondly, have the fruit boiling hot when sealed. Have 
upon the range or stove a pan in which each empty can is 
set to be filled after it is rolled in hot water. Lay elastic 
and top close to your hand, fill the can to overflowing, re 
membering that the fruit will shrink as it cools, and that a 
vacuum invites the air to enter ; clap on the top without 
the loss of a second, screw as tightly as you can, and as the 
contents and the can cool, screw again and again to fit the 
contraction of metal and glass. 

Thirdly, if you use glass cans (and they are cheapest in 
the end, for you can use them year after year, getting new 
.elastics when you need them) keep them in a cool, dark place, 
and dry as well as cool. The light will cause them to fer- 
ment, and also change the color. 

Canned Berries. *J« 

Heat slowly to boiling, in a large kettle. When they 
begin to boil, add sugar in the proportion of one tablespoon- 
ful to each quart of fruit. Before doing this, however, 
if there is much juice iu the kettle, dip out the surplus with 
a dipper or cup. It will only increase the number of cans 
to be filled, without real advantage to you. Leave the berries 
almost dry before putting in the sugar. This will make 
syrup enough. Boil all together fifteen minutes, and can. 

Huckleberries, grapes, blackberries, currants, raspber- 
"des, cherries, and str(»'vberries put up in this way are very 



CANNED FRUITS AND VEGETABLES. -i ( .> 

good eaten as you would preserves, and make pies wliich aio 
scarcely inferior to those filled with fresh fruit. 

Canned Peaches, t^ 

Pare, cut in half and stone, taking care not to break 
the fruit ; drop each piece in cold water so soon as it is 
pared. The large, white freestone peaches are nicest for 
this purpose. Firmness of texture is a desideratum. The 
fruit should be ripe, but not soft. Allow a heaping table- 
spoonful of sugar to each quart of fruit, scattering it 
between the layers. Fill your kettle and heat slowly to a 
boil. Boil three minutes, just to assure yourself that eveiy 
piece of fruit is heated through. Can and seal. It i? 
safe to put a cupful of water in the bottom of the kettk 
before jiacking it with fruit, lest the lower layer should 
burn. 

Canned Pears, bj* 

For the finer varieties, such as the Bartlett and Seckel, 
prepare a syi'up, allowing a pint of pure water and a quar- 
ter of a pound of sugar to a quart of fruit. While this is 
lieating, peel the pears, drojiping each, as it is pared, into a 
pan of clear water, lest the color should change by exposure 
to the air. When the syrup has come to a fast boil, put iu 
the pears carefully, not to bruise them, and boil until they 
look clear and can be easily pierced by a fork. Have the 
cans ready, i-olled in hot water, pack with the pears and fill 
to overflowing with the scalding syrup, which must be kept 
on the fire all the while, and seal. 

The tougher and more common pears must be boiled in 
water until tender ; thro^vn while warm into the hot syrup, 
jhen allowed to boil ten minutes before they are canned. 

Apples may be ti-eated in either of the abov ways aa 
their texture mav seem to demand. 



476 COMMON SENSE. 

Canned Plums. »fi 

Prick with a needle to prevent bursting; pi-epare a 
syvup allowing a gill of pure water and a quarter of a jDOund 
of sugar to every three quarts of fruit. When the sugar 
is dissolved and the water blood-warm, put in the plums. 
Heat slowly to a boil. Let them boil five minutes — not 
fast or they will break badly, fill up the jars with i^lums, 
pour in the scalding syrup until it rims down the sides, 
and seal. 

Greengages are very fine i)ut up in this way; also dam- 
Bons for pies. 

Canned Tomatoes, t^ 

" I don't hold with any of these new-fangled notions," 
paid an old lady to me, when I mentioned that my canning 
was over for the svimmer. " I was beguiled, two years ago, 
into putting up some tomaytesses in cans, and if I'm for- 
given for that folly I'll never tempt Providence in the 
same manner agaiii." 

" They didn't keep, then ? " 

" Keej) ! they sp'iled in a week ! 'Twas no more'n I 
expected and deserved for meddling with such a hum- 
bug." 

" Perhaps you did not follow the directions closely ? " 

" Indeed I did ! I cooked the tormented things, and 
tieasoned 'em with butter and salt, all ready for the table, 
and screwed the tops down tight. But, in course, they 
sp'iled ! " 

" Were you careful to put them into the cans boiling 
hot?" 

" 'Twould have cracked the glass ! I let 'em get nice 
and cold first. I didn't suppose it made any diflerence 
about such a trifle as that ! " 

Poor old lady ! I think of her and her mighty tempta- 



CAJiJNED FKUITS AJST) VEGETABLES. 477 

lion of Providence Avlienever I can tomatoes, for lieat does 
make a difference — all the diffeience in the world in tliia 
Bort of woi'k. 

Pour boiling water over the tomatoes to loosen the 
skins. Remove these ; drain off all the juice that Avill 
come away Avithout pressing hard ; put them into a kettle 
and heat slowly to a boil. Your tomatoes will look much 
nicer if you remove all the hard pai'ts before putting 
them on the fire, and rub the pulp soft with your hands. 
Boil ten minutes, dip out the surplus liquid, pour the 
tomatoes, boiling hot, into the cans, and seal. Keep in a 
coolj dark place. 

Canned Tomatoes and Corn, t^ 

Boil the corn on the cob, when it is in nice order for 
roasting, twenty minutes over a good fire, and cut off while 
hot. Have your tomatoes skinned and rubbed to a smooth 
pulp. Put in two measui-es of them for every one of the cut 
corn; salt as for the table, stirring it well in, and bring to 
a hard boil. Then, can quickly, and as soon as they are 
cold set away in a cool, dark place. 

Preserved Green Corn. ^J* 

Boil on the cob until the milk ceases to flow when the 
grain is pricked. Cut off the corn and pack in stone jars 
in the following order : — A layer of salt at the bottom, 
half an inch deep. Then one of corn two inches in depth, 
another half-inch of salt, and so on until the jar is nearly 
filled. Let the topmost layer of salt be double the depth of 
thg others, and pour over all melted — not hot — lard. Presa 
upon this, when nearly hard, thick white paper, cut to fit 
the mouth of the jar. Keep in a cool place. Soak over 
night before using it. 



478 COMMON SENSE. 

Green corn is difficult to can, but I know it -will keep 
well if i:)ut up in this way. And, strange to tell, be sa 
fresh after the night's soaking as to require salt when you 
boil it for the table. Should the top layer be musty, dig 
lower still, and you will probably be rewarded for the search. 



BRANDIED FRUITS. 
Bhandied Peaches or Pears. ^ 

4 lbs. fruit. 

4 lbs. sugar. 

1 pint best white brandy. 

Make a syrup of the sugar and enough water to dissolve 
it. Let this come to a boil; put the fruit in and boil five 
minutes. Having removed the fruit carefully, let the syrup 
boil fifteen minutes longer, or until it thickens well ; add 
the brandy, and take the kettle at once from the fire ; pour 
the hot syrup over the fruit, and seal. 

If, after the fruit is taken from the fire, a reddish liquor 
oozes from it, drain this ofi" before adding the clear syrup. 
Put up in glass jars. 

Peaches and pears should be peeled for brandying. 
Plums should be pricked and watched carefully for fear of 
bursting. 

Brandied Cherries or Berries. •J** 

Make a syrup of a pound of sugar and a half gill of 
water for every two lbs. of fruit. Heat to boiling, stii-ring 
to prevent burning, and pour over the berries while warm 
— not hot. Let them stand together an hovir ; put all into 
a preserving-kettle, and heat slowly ; boil five minutes, take 
out the fruit with a perforated skimmer, and boil the syrup 



CANDIES. 470 

twenty minutes. Add a j^int of brandy for every five pounds 
of fruit ; pour over the berries hot, and seal. 



CANDIES. 
Molasses Candy. »J< 

1 quart good molasses. 

■J cup vinegar. , 

1 cup sugai-. 

Butter the size of an egg. 

1 teaspoonful saleratus. 

Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar, mix with the molas- 
Bes, and boil, stirring frequently, until it hardens when 
dropped from the spoon into cold water; then stir in thq^ 
butter and soda, the latter dissolved in hot water. Flavor to 
your taste, give one hard final stir, and pour into Inittered 
dishes. As it cools, cut iiito squares for " taftey," or, while 
soft enough to handle, pull white into sticks, \ising only the 
buttered tips of your fingers for that purpose. 

Sugar-candy. »J« 
G cups of sugar. 
1 cup of vinegar. 
1 cup of water. 

Tablespoonful of butter, put in at the last, with 
1 teaspoonful saleratus dissolved in hot water. 

Boil, without stirring, half an hour, or until it crisps in 
cold water. Pull white with the tips of your fingers. 

Since children must eat candy, this is the best you can 
give them. It is very nice. Flavor to taste. 



COarMON SEBTSE. 



PICKLES. 



"Use none but the be»fc cider vinegar ; especially avoid 
the sharp colorless liquid sold under that name. It is weak 
sulphuric acid, warranted to riddle the coat of any stomach, 
even that of an ostrich, if that bii-d Avere so bereft of the 
iiistincl of self-pi-eservation as to make a lunch of bright- 
green cucumber-pickle seven times a week. 

If you boil pickles in bell-metal, do not let them stand 
in it one moment when it is off the fire ; and see for your- 
self that it is perfectly clean and newly scoured before the 
vinegar is put in. 

Keep pickles in glass or hard stoneware ; look them 
over every month ; remove the soft ones, and if there are 
several of these, drain off and scald the vinegar, adding a 
^up of sugar for each gallon, and pour hot over the pickJes. 
If they are keeping well, throw in a liberal handful of sugar 
for every gallon, and tie tlnni up again. This tends to 
preserve them, and mellows the sharpness of the vinegar. 
This does not apply to sweet pickle. 

Pickle, well made, is better when a year old than at the 
#nd of six months. I have eaten walnut pickle ten yeari 
old that was very fine. 

Keep your jiickles well covered with vinegar. 

If you use ground spices, tie them up in thin muslin 
bags. 

Cucumber or Gherkin Pickle. pJ« 

Choose small cucumbers, or gherkins, for this purpose* 
They are more tender, and look better on the table. Re- 
ject all over a finger in length, and every one that is mis- 
shapen or specked, however slightly. Pack in a stone jar 
or wooden bucket, in layers, strewing salt thickly between 
these. Cover the top layer out of sight with salt, and pout 



PICKLES. 481 

on cold wateu enough to cover all. Lay a small plate or 
round board upon them, with a clean stone to keep it down. 
You may leave them in the brine for a week or a month, 
Rtirring up from the bottom every other day. If the longer 
time, be sure your salt and water is strong enough to bear 
up an egg. If you raise your own cucumbers, pick them 
every day, and drop in the jjickle. When you are ready to 
put them up, throw away the brine, with any cucumbers 
that may have softened under the process, and lay the rest 
in cold fresh water for twenty-four hours. Change the 
water then for fresh, and leave it for another day. Have 
a kettle ready, lined with green vine-leaves, and lay the 
pickles evenly within it, scattering powdered alum over the 
layers. A bit of alum as lai-ge as a pigeon-egg will be 
enough for a two-gallon kettleful. Fill with cold water, 
cover with vine-leaves, three deep ; put a close lid or in- 
verted pan over all, and steam over a slow fire five or si3l 
hours, not allowing the water to boil. When the pickles 
are a fine green, remove the leaves and throw the cvicmnbers 
into very cold water. Let them stand in it while yo i pre- 
pare the vinegar. To one gallon allow a cup of sugar, three 
dozen whole black peppers, the same of cloves, half as 
much allspice, one dozen blades of mace. Boil five minutes ; 
put the cucumbers into a stone jar, and pour the vinegar 
over them scalding hot. Cover closely. Two days after- 
ward scald the vinegar again and return to the pickles. 
Jlepeat this process three times more, at intervals of two, 
four, and six days. Cover with a stoneware or wooden 
top ; tie stout cloth over this, and keep in a cool, dry place. 
They will be ready for eating in two months. Examine 
every few weeks. 
21 



483- COJtIMON SENSE. 

Pickled Mangoes, t^ * 

Young musk or nutmeg melons. 

English mustard-seed, two handfuls, mixed witli 

Scraped horseradish, one handful. 

Mace and nutmeg pounded, 1 teaspoonful. 

Chopped garlic, 2 teaspoonfuls. 

A little ginger. 

Whole pepper-corns, 1 dozen. 

^ tablespoonful of ground mustard to a pint of the 

mixture. 
1 tablespoonful sugar to the same quantity. 
1 " best salad oil to the same. 

1 teaspoonful celery-seed. 

Cut a slit in the side of the melon ; insei ^ your fi nger 
and extract all the seeds. If you cannot get them out in 
this way, cut a slender piece out, saving it to replace, — but 
the slit is better. Lay the mangoes in strong brine for 
three days. Draiii ofi" the brine, and freshen in pure water 
twenty-four hours. Green as you would cucumbers, and 
lay in cold water until cold and firm. Fill with the stuf- 
fing ; sew up the slit, or tie up with packthread ; pack in 
a deep stone jar, and pour scalding vinegar over them. 
Repeat this process three times more at intervals of two 
days, then tie up and set away in a cool, dry place. 

They will not be " ripe " under four months, but are 
very fine when they are. They will keep several years. 

Peppee Mangoes, t^ 

Are put up in the same way, iising gi-een peppers that 
are full-grown, but not tinged with red. 

They are very good, but your fingers will smart aftei 
thrusting them into the peppers to pull ovit the seeds. For 
this purpose I have used, first, a small penknife, to cut the 



> pounded fiBe. 



PICKLES. 483 

core from its attachment to the stem-end of the pepi)er, 
then a smooth bit of stick, to pry ojjen tlie slit in the side 
and work out the loose core or bunch of seed. By tha 
exercise of a littlo ingenuity you may spare yourself all 
suftering from this cause. Should your fingers burn badly, 
anoint them with sweet-oil and Avear gloves that night. 
Cream will also allay the smart. 

Pickled Cabbage ( Yellow). 

2 gallons vinegar. 

1 pint white mustard-seed. 
4 oz. ginger, 

3 oz. pepper-corns. 

1 oz. allspice. 

2 oz. cloves. 
1 oz. mace. 

1 oz. nutmeg. 

2 oz. turmeric. 
1 large handful of garlic, chopped. 

1 handful scraped horseradish. 

4 lbs. sugar. 

2 oz. celery seed. 

3 lemons, sliced thin. 

Mix all and set in the sun for three days. 

To prepare the cabbage, cut in quarters — leaving off tJia 
outer and green leaves — and put in a kettle of boiling brine. 
Cook three minutes. Take out, drain, and cover thickly with 
salt. Spread out in the sun to dry ; then shake off the salt, 
and cover with cold vinegar in which has been steeped enough 
turmeric to color it well. Leave it in this two weeks, to 
draw out the salt and to plump the cabbage. They are 
then ready to pack down in the seasoned vinegar. D© not 
use under six weeks or two months. 



484 commViN sense. 

Pickled Cabbage {Puriole). 

Quarter the cabbage. Lay iii a wooden tray, sprinkle 
thickly with salt, and set in the cellar until next day. 
Drain oflF the brine, wipe dry, lay in the sun two hours, 
and cover with cold vinegar for twelve hours. Prepare 
tlie pickle by seasoning enough vinegar to cover the cab- 
bage with equal quantities of mace, cloves, whole white 
peppers ; a cup of sugar to every gallon of vinegar, and a 
teaspoonful of celery seed for every pint. Pack the cab- 
bage in a stone jar ; boil the vinegar and spices five min- 
utes and pour on hot. Cover and set away in a cool, dry- 
place. 

This will be ripe in six weeks. 

Pickled Onions. 

Peel the onions, which should be fine white ones — not 
too large. Let them stand in strong brine for four days, 
changing it twice. Heat more brine to a boil, throw in the 
onions, and boil three minutes. Throw them at once into 
cold water, and leave them there four hours. Pack in jars, 
interspersing with whole mace, white pepper-corns, and 
cloves. Fill up Avith scalding vinegar in which you have 
put a cupful of sugar for every gallon. Cork while hot. 

They will be ready for use in a month, but will be better 
at the end of three months. 

Gkeen Beans and Radish Pods. 

Take young French or " string " beans, and radish pods 
just before they change color; green and pickle as you do 
cucumbers and gherkins. 



picKhES. 485 

Nasturtium-seed, i^ 

Take the groeu seed after tlie flower has dried off. Lay 
in salt and water two days, in cold water one day; pack 
in bottles and cover witli scalding vinegar, seasoned with 
mace and white peppei-corns, and sweetened slightly with 
white sugar. Cork, and set away four weeks before you 
use them. 

They are an excellent substitute for capers. 

Pickled Butternuts and Walnuts. *^ 

Gather them when soft enough to be pierced by a pin. 
Lay them in strong brine five days, changing this twice 
in the meantime. Drain, and wipe them with a coarse 
cloth ; pierce each by running a large needle through it, 
and lay in cold water for six hours. 

To each gallon of vinegar allow a cup of sugar, three 
dozen each of whole cloves and black pejiper-corns, half as 
much allspice, and a dozen blades of mace.' Boil five 
minutes ; pack the nuts in small jars and pour over them 
scalding hot. Il(3peat this twice within a week ; tie \ip and 
set away. 

They will be good to eat in a month — and very good 
too. 

Pickled Cauliflower. ►J* 

Pick the whitest and closest bxxnches. Cut into small 
spi'ays or clusters. Plunge into a kettle of scalding brine 
and boil three minutes. Take them out, lay upon a sieve 
or a cloth, sprinkle thickly with salt, and, when dry, brush 
this off. Cover with cold vinegar for two days, setting the 
jar in the sun. Then pack carefully in glass or stoneware 
jars, and pour over them scalding vinegar seasoned thus : 

To one gallon allow a cup of white sugar, a dozen blades 



486 COMMON SENSE. 

of mace, a tablespoonful of celery-seed, two dozen white 
pop])er-corns and some bits of red pepper pods, a tablespoon- 
ful of coriander-seed, and the same of whole mustard. Boil 
five minutes. Repeat the scalding once a week for three 
weeks ; tie up and set away. Keep the cauliflowers under 
the vinegar b}' putting a small plate on top. 

Sliced Cucumber Pickle. ( Very nice.) 

2 dozen large cucumbers, sliced, and boiled in vinegar 
enough to cover them, one hour. Set aside in the 
hot vinegar. 
To each gallon of cold vinegar allow — 

1 lb. sugar. 

1 tablespoonful of cinnamon. 

1 " ginger. 

1 " black pepper. 

1 " celery-seed. 

1 teaspoonful of mace. 

1 " allspice. 

1 " cloves. 

1 tablespoonful tiu-meric. 

1 " horseradish, scraped. 

1 " garlic, sliced. 

■^ teaspoonful Cayenne pepper. 

Put in the cucumbers and stew two hours. 

The pickle will be ready for use so soon as it is cold 

Pickled Water-melon Eind. (Extremely nice.) 

Equal weight of rind and white sugar. 
^ ounce white ginger to a gallon of pickle. 
1 pint vinegar to every pound of sugar. 
1 tablespoonful turfneric to a gallon of pickle. 
!R!ace, cloves, and cinnamon to taste, 



PICKLES. 4S7 

Take the thickest rind you can get, pare off tlie hard 
green rind, also the soft inner pulp. Lay the pieces — narrow 
strips or fanciful cuttings — iu brine strong enough to floai 
an egg, and let thein remain in it ten days. Then soak in 
faii-watei-, changing it every day for ten days. Cover them 
with clear water in a preserving-kettle, heat slowly and 
boil five mi antes. Take them out and plunge instantly iiito 
ice-water. Leave them in this until next day. Give them 
another gentle boil of five minutes in strong alum- water 
Simmer carefully, as a hard boil will injure them. Change 
directly from the alum to the ice-water again, and do not 
disturb them for four hours. After a third boil of five 
minutes, let them remain all night in the last water to make 
them tender. Next day add to enough water to cover the 
rinds sufiicient sugar to make it quite sweet, but not a syrup. 
Simmer the rinds in this ten minutes, throw the water away, 
and spread them upon dishes to cool. Meanwhile prepare 
a second s^Tup, allowing sugar equal in weight to the rind, 
and half an ounce of sliced white ginger to a gallon of 
the pickle, with a cup of water for every two pounds of 
sugar. When the sugar is melted and the syrup quite 
hot, but not boiling, put in the rinds and simmer until they 
look quite clear. Take it out, spread upon the dishes again, 
while you add to the syrup a pint of vinegar for every pound 
of the sugar you have put in, one tables^ioonful of turmeric 
to a gallon of jjickle ; mace, cloves, and cinnamon to taste. 
Boil this up, return the rind to it, and simmer fifteen 
minutes. Put up in glass jars. It \vill be fit for use in two 
weeks. 

This is a very handsome and delicious pickle, although 
it may seem to be made upon the piinciple of the French« 
man's pebble-soup. 



488 common sen8e. 

Greek Tomato Soy. »J« 

2 gallons tomatoes, green, and sliced witliout peeling 
12 good-sized onions, also sliced. 
2 quarts vinegar. 

1 quart sugar. 

2 tablespoonfuls salt. 

2 " ground mustard. 

2 " black pepper, groiind. 

1 tablespoonful allsjjice. 
1 " cloves. 

Mix all together and stew until tender, stirring often 
lest they should scorch. Put up in small glass jai-s. 

This is a most useful and pleasant sauce for almosi 
every kind of meat and fish. 

Sweet Tomato Pickle. ( Ye^y good.) J^ 

7 lbs. ripe tomatoes, peeled and sliced. 

3^ " sugar. 

1 oz. cinnamon and mace mixed. 

1 " cloves. 

1 quart of vinegar. 

Mix all together and stew hour. 

Ripe Tomato Pickle. {JVb. 2.) 

2 gallons tomatoes, peeled, but not sliced. 

1 pint vinegar. 

2 lbs. sugar. 

Mace, nutmeg, and cinnamon to taste. 

Put all on together, heat slowly to a boil, and simmei 
DUO hour. Put up in glass jars. 



PICKLES. 489 

Sweet Pickle — Plums, Pears, Peaches, or otiier 
Fruits, i^ 

7 lbs. fruit, pared. 
4 " white sugar. 
1 pint strong vinegar. 
Mace, cinnamon, and cloves. 

Pare peaches and pears ; prick plums and damsons, to- 
rn itoes, " globes " or husk-tomatoes (otherwise known as 
ground-plums), put into the kettle with alternate layers of 
sugar. Heat slowly to a boil ; add the vinegar and spice ; 
boil five minutes ; take out the fruit with a perforated 
skimmer and sj^read upon dishes to cool. Boil the syrup 
thick ; pack the fruit in glass jars, and pour the syruji on 
boiling hot. 

Examine every few days for the first month, and should 
it show signs of fermenting set the jars (uncovered) in a 
kettle of water, and heat until the contents are scald- 
ing. 

Husk-tomatoes — a fruit which looks like a hybrid be- 
tween the tomato and plum — are particularly nice put up 
in this way. 

Pickled Peaches. 

10 lbs. fruit — pared. 

4^ " siigar. 

1 quai-t vinegar. 
Mace, cinnamon, and cloves to taste. 

Lay the peaches in the sugar for an hour; drain off 
€very drop of syrup, and put over the fire with about a 
cup of water. Boil until the scum ceases to rise. Skim ; 
put in the fruit and boil five minutes. Take out the 
peaches with a 2:)erforated skimmer, and spi'ead upon dishes 
to cool. Add the vinegrir and spices to the syrup, BoiJ 
21* 



490 COMMON SENSE. 

fifteen minutes longer, and pour over tlie fruit in glasa 
jars. 

Pickled Peaches {unpeeled). 

Rub the fur off with a coarse cloth, and prick each 
peach with a fork. Heat in just enough water to covei 
them until they almost boil ; take them out, and add to thi 
water sugar in the following proportions : — 
For every 7 lbs. of fruit 

3 lbs. of sugar. 
Boil fifteen minutes ; skim, and add — 
3 pints of vinegar. 

1 tablespoonful (each) of allspice, mace, and cinnamon. 
1 teaspoonful celery-seed. 
1 " cloves. 

Put the spices in thin muslin bags. Boil all together 
ten minutes, then jjut in the fruit, and boil vmtii they can 
be pierced with a straw. Take out the fruit with a skim- 
mer, and spread upon dishes to cool. Boil the syrup until 
thick, pack the peaches in glass jars, and pour this over 
them scalding hot. 

You may pickle pears in the same way without peeling. 

Pickled Cherries. »J« 

Morella, or large red tart cheri-ies, as fresh as you can 
get them. To every quart allow a large cup of vinegar 
and two tablespoonfuls of sugar, with a dozen whole cloves 
and half a dozen blades of mace. 

Put the vinegar and sugar on to heat with tlie spices. 
Boil five minutes ; tiirn out into a covered stoneware ves- 
sel, cover, and let it get perfectly cold. Strain out the 
spices, fill small jars three-quarters of the way to the top 
with fruit, and pour the cold vinegar over tbem. Cork oi 
cover tightly. Leave the stems on the cherries. 



DRINKS. 491 

PlCKLETTE. *^ 

4 large crisp cabbages, cbopped fine. 

1 quart onions, chopped fine. 

2 quarts of vinegar, or enough to cover the cabbage. 
2 lbs. brown sugar. 

2 tablespoonfuls gi-ound mustard. 

2 '* black pepper. 

2 " cinnamon. 

2 " turmeric. 

2 " celery-seed. 

1 " allsjiice. 

1 " mace. 

1 " alum, pulverized. 

Pack the cabbage and onions in alternate layers, with a 
little salt between them. Let them stand until next day. 
Then scald the vinegar, sugar, and spices together, and pour 
over the cabbage and onion. Do this three mornings in suc- 
cession. On the fourth, put all together over the fire and 
heat to a boil. Let them boil five minutes. Wlien cold, 
pack in small jai*s. 

It is fit for use as soon as cool, but keeps well. 



DRINKS. 

Coffee. 

Never buy gi-ound coffee if you can get any other. The 
mere fact that after they have gone to the expense of the 
machinery and labor requisite for grinding it, the manufac- 
turers can sell it cheaper per pound than grocers can the 
whole grains, roasted or raw, should convince eveiy sensible 
person that it is adulterated with other and less expensive 



492 COMMON SENSE. 

substances. Be tliat as it may, coffee loses its aroma so 
rapidly after it is ground that it is worth your while to 
buy it whole, either in small quantities freshly roasted, or 
raw, and roast it yourself. You can roast in a pan in the 
oven, stirring every few minutes, or in the same upon the 
top of the range. Stir often and roast quickly to a blight 
brc'WTi — not a dull black. While still hot, beat up the white 
of an egg with a tablespoonful of melted b\itter and stir up 
well with it. This will tend to preserve the flavor. Grind 
just enough at a time for a siugle making. 

To MAKE Coffee (boiled). 

1 full coffee-cup (^ pint) of ground coffee. 
1 quart of boiling water. 
White of an egg, and crushed shell of same. 
^ cup of cold water to settle it. 

Stir up the eggshell and the white (beaten) with the 
coffee, and a very little cold water, and mix gradually with 
the boiling water in the coffee-boiler. Stir from tlie sides 
and top as it boils up. Boil pretty fast twelve minutes; 
pour in the cold water and take from the fire, setting 
gently upon the hearth to settle. In five minutes, pour it 
off carefully into your silver, china, or Britannia coffee-pot, 
which should be previously well scalded. 

Send to table hot. 

To Make Coffee without Boiling. 

There are so many patent coft*ee-pots for this purpose, 
and the directions sold with these are so minxite, that I 
need give only a few general rules here. Allow rather more 
coffee to a given quantity of water than if it were to be 
boiled, and have it ground very fine. Put the coffee in the 
uppermost compartment, pour on the water \ery slowJj 



DKINKS. 493 

until tlie fine coffee is saturated, tlien niore rapidly. The 
water should be boiling. Shut down the top, and the coffee 
ought to be ready when it has gone through the double oi 
treble set of strainers. Should it not be strong enough, 
run it through again. 

Caf6 au Lait. 

1 pint very strong-matZe coffee — fresh and hot. 
1 " boiling milk. 

The coffee shoTxld be poured off the grounds through a 
fine strainer (thin muslin is the best material) into the 
table coffee-pot. Add the milk, and set the pot where it will 
keep hot for five minutes before pouring it out 

Tea. 

2 teaspoonfuls of tea to one large cupful of boiling 
water. 

Scald the teapot well, put in the tea, and, covering close, 
set it on the stove or range one minute to warm ; pour on 
enough boiling water to cover it well, and let it stand ten 
minutes to " draw." Keep the lid of the pot shut, and set 
in a warm jilace, but do not let it boil. Fill up with as 
much boiling water as you will need, and send hot to the 
table, after pouring into a heated china or silver pot. 

The bane of tea in many households is unboiled water. 
It can never extiact the flavor as it should, although it 
steep for hours. The kettle should not only steam, but 
bubble and puff in a hard boil before you add water from 
it to the tea-leaves. 

Boiling after the tea is made, injures the flavor, eithej 
by deadening or making it rank and " herby " 



494 common sense. 

Chocolate. >^ 

6 tablespoonfuls grated chocolate to each pint of water. 
As much milk as you have water. 
Sweeten to taste. 

Put on the water boiling hot. Rub the chocolate smooth 
in a little cold water, and stir into the boiling water. Boil 
twenty minutes ; add the milk and boil ten minutes more, 
stirring frequently. You can sweeten upon the fire or in 
the cups. 

Cocoa Nibs, or Shells. »J* 

1 quart of boiling water. 

2 ozs. of cocoa nibs. 
1 quart fresh milk. 

Wet the shells or nibs up with a little cold water ; add 
to the boiling, and cook one hour and a half; strain, put in 
the milk, let it heat almost to boiling, and take from the 
fire. 

This is excellent for invalids. 

Prepaked Cocoa. ►Ji^ 

1 quart of watei', boiling. 

2 ozs. prepared cocoa — Baker's is best. 
1 quart of milk. 

Make as you do chocolate — only boil nearly an hour 
before you add the milk, afterward heating almost to boil- 
ing. Sweeten to taste. 

Milk Tea (for Children). 

1 pint fresh milk and the same of boiling water. Sweeten 
to taste. 



DRINKS. 4^95 

Raspberry Royal. 

4 quarts ripe berries. 
1 quart best cider vinegar. 
1 lb. white sugar. 
1 pint fine brandy. 

Put tlie berries in a stone jar, pour the vinegar ovei 
them, add the sugar, and pound the berries to a paste with 
a wooden pestle, or mash with a spoon. Let them stand in 
the sun four hours ; strain and squeeze out all the j nice, 
and put in the brandy. Seal up in bottles; lay them on 
their sides in the cellar, and cover with sawdust. 

Stir two tablespoonfuls into a tumbler of ice-water when 
you wish to use it. 

Raspberry Vinegar. »J« 

Put the raspberries into a stone vessel and mash them 
to a pulp. Add cider-vinegar — no specious imitation, but 
the genuine article — enough to cover it well. Stand in the 
sun twelve hours, and all night in the cellar. Stir up well 
occasionally during this time. Strain, and put as many fresh 
berries in the jar as you took out; pour the strained vinegar 
over them ; mash and set in the sun all day. Strain a sec- 
ond time next day. To each quart of this juice allow 

1 pint of water. 

5 lbs. of sugar (best white) for every 3 pints of thia 
liquid, juice and water mingled. 

Place over a gentle fire and stir until the sugar is dis- 
solved. Heat slowly to boiling, skimming off the scum ; 
and as soon as it fairly boils take off and strain. Bottle 
while warm, arid seal the corks with sealing-wax, or bees'- 
*yax and rosin. 

A most refreshing and plea ant drink. 



496 common sensk. 

Blackberry Vinegar 

Is made in the same manner as raspberry, allowing 5^ 
lbs. sugar to 3 pints of juice and water. 

BliACKBERRY CoRDIAL. 

1 quart of blackberry juice. 

1 lb. white sugar. 

^ oz. grated nutmeg. 

^ oz. powdered cinnamon. 

^ oz. allspice. 

^ oz. cloves. 

1 pint best brandy. 

Tie the spices in thin muslin bags ; boil juice, sugar, and 
spices together fifteen minutes, skimming well ; add the 
brandy ; set aside in a closely covered vessel to cool. When 
perfectly cold, strain out the spices, and bottle, sealing the 
corks. 

Elderberry Wine. 

8 quarts of berries. 

4 quarts of boiling water poured over the berries. 

Let it stand twelve hours, stirring now and then. Strain 
well, pressing out all the juice. Add '' 

3 lbs. of s\xgar to 4 quarts of juice. 
1 oz. powdered cinnamon. 
^ oz. powdered cloves. 

Boil five minutes, and set away to ferment in a stone 
jar, with a cloth thrown lightly over it. Wlien it has dona 
fermenting, rack it off carefully, not to disturb tho lees. 
Bottle and cork down well. 



DKLNK8. 497 

Cranberry Wixe. 

Mash ripe berries to a pulp ; put into a stone jar. 
Add 1 quart of water to 2 quarts of berries. 

Stir well and let it stand two days. Strain through a 
double flannel bag; mash a second supply of berries, eqiial 
in quantity to the first, and cover with this liquid. Steep 
two days more ; strain ; add 

1 lb. sugar for 3 quarts of liquor, 

and boil five minutes. Let it ferment in lightly covered 
jars ; rack off and bottle. 

This is said to be very good for scrofula. 

Strawberry Wine. 

3 quarts of strawberries, mashed and strained. To the 
juice (thei-e should be about a quart, if the beiries are ripe 
and fresh) add 

1 quart of water. 

1 lb. of sugar. 

Stir up well and ferment in a clean, sweet cask, leaving 
the bung out. When the working subsides close tightly, or 
rack off" into bottles. 

This is said by those who have tasted it to be very good. 

Currant Wine. 

Pick, stem, mash, and strain the currants, which sJiould 
be very ripe. 

To 1 quart of juice add 
f lb. wliite sugar. 
^ pint of water. 

Stir all together long and \<ell; put into a clean cask, 
leaving out the bving, and covering the whole with a bit 



498 COMMON SENSE. 

of lace or mosqiiito net. Let it ferment about four weeks — 
rack off when it is quite still, and bottle. 

Ja5l\ica Ginger-beer. 

1 bottle Jamaica Ginger Extract. 
1 oz. cream-tartar. 
6 quarts water. 
1 lb. sugar. 

Stir until the sugar is melted, then put in the grated 
peel of a lemon, and heat until blood-warm. Add a table- 
spoonful of brewers' yeast; stir well and bottle, wiring 
down the corks. It will be fit for use in four days. 

Tliis is a refreshing and healthful beverage mixed with 
pounded ice in hot weather. 

Raisin Wine. 

1 lb. white sugar. 

2 lbs. raisins, seeded and chopped. 

1 lemon — all the juice and half the grated peel. 

2 gallons boiling water. 

Put all into a stone jar, and stir every day for a week. 
Strain, then, and bottle it. It will be fit for use in ten 
days. 

Lemonade or Sherbert. 

3 lemons to a quart of water. 
G tablespoonfuls of sugar. 

Pare the yellow peel from the lemons, and, unless you 
mean to use the sherbert immediately, leave it out. It 
gives a bitter taste to the sugar if left long in it. Slice 
and squeeze the lemons upon the sugar, add a veiy little 
water, and let them stand fifteen minutes. Then fill up 
with water ; ice well, stir, and pour out. 



DEINKS. 490 

Okangeade 

Is made in tlie same manner, substituting oranges foi 
lemons. 

Strawbebry Sherbert. (Delicious.) 

1 quart of strawberries. 

3 pints of water. 

1 lemon — the juice only. 

1 tablespoonful orange-flower water. 

f lb. white sugar. 

The strawberries should be fresh and ripe. Crush to a 
smooth paste ; add the rest of the ingredients (except 
the sugar), and let it stand three hours. Strain over the 
sugar, squeezing the cloth hard ; stir until the sugar is dis- 
solved ; strain again and set in ice for two hours or mora 
before you use it. 

Regent's Punch, {Fine.) 

1 lb. loaf-sugar or rock candy. 

1 large cup strong black tea — (made). 

3 wine-glasses of brandy. 

3 " " rum. 

1 bottle champagne. 

2 oranges — juice only. 

3 lemons— " " 
1 lai-ge lump of ice. 

This receipt was given me by a gentleman of the old 
school, a connoisseur in the matter of beverages as of 
cookery. " Tell your readers," he writes, " that better 
punch was never brewed." I give receipt and message 
together. 



500 common sense. 

Roman Punch. 

3 coffee cups of lemonade — (strong and sweet). 
1 glass champagne. 

1 " rum. 

2 oranges — jviice only. 

2 eggs — whites only — well whipped. 
•^ lb, powdered sugar, beaten into the stiffened whites. 
You must ice abundantly — or, if you prefer, freeze. 

Sherry Cobbler. 

Several slices of pineapple, cut in quarters. 

A lemon, sliced thin. 

An oi'ange, " 

■^ cup of powdered sugar. 

1 tumbler of sherry wine. 

Ice-water. 

Pounded ice. 

Take a wide-mouthed quart-pitcher and lay the sliced 
frviit in order in the bottom, sprinkling sugar and pounded 
ice between the layers. Cover with sugar and ice, and let 
all stand together five minutes. Add then two tumblers of 
water and all the sugar, and stir well to dissolve this. Fill 
the pitcher nearly full of pounded ice, pour in the wine, 
and stir up from the bottom until the ingredients are 
thoroughly mixed. In pouring it out put a slice of each 
kind of fruit in each goblet before adding the liquid. 

It is best sucked through a straw or glass tube. 

Nectar. »J« 

Make as above, substituting a little rose-water for the 
pineapple, and squeezing out the juice of the orange anJ 



DEDTKS. 501 

lemon, instead of putting in the slices. Sprinkle nutmeg 
on the top. 

This forms a delicious and refreshing drink for in- 
Talids. 

Claret Punch. 

1 bottle of claret. 

^ the quantity of ice-water. 

2 lemons, sliced. 

•^ cup powdered sugar. 

Cover the sliced lemon with sugar and let it stand ten 
minutes. Add the water ; stii' hard for a whole minute, and 
pour in the wine. Put pounded ice in each glass before 
filling with the mixture. 

Egg Nogg. »J* 

6 eggs — whites and yolks beaten separately and very 

stiff. 
I quart lich milk. 
^ Clip of sugar. 
■^ pint best brandy. 
Flavor with nutmeg. 

Stir the yolks into the milk with the sugar, wliich should 
first be beaten with the yolks. Next, comes the brandy. 
Lastly whip in the whites of three eggs. 

Cherry Bounce. 

4 lbs. of sour and the same quantity of sweet cherries, 
2^ lbs. white sugar. 
1 gallon best whiskey. 

Crush the cherries' to pieces by pounding in a deep 
•wooden vessel with a smooth billet of wood. Beat hard 
enough to crack all the stones. Put into a deep stone jar; 
mix in the sugar well, and cover with the whiskey. Shaka 



502 COMMON SENSE. 

around briskly and turn into a demijolin. Cork tightly 
and let it stand a month, shaking it every day, and another 
nionth without toucliing it. Then strain olf and bottle. 
It is better a year than six months old. 

If the Maltese cross appears but seldom in the section 
devoted to drinks, it is because most of my information 
respecting their manufacture is second-hand. In my own 
family they are so little used, except in sickness, that I 
should not dare to teach others, upon my own authority, 
how to prepare them. Indeed, the temptation I felt to omit 
many of them reminded me of a remark made, introdtlctory 
of preserves, by one of the " Complete Housewives," who, 
all five together, drove me to the vei'ge of an attack of con- 
gestion of the brain, before I had been a housekeeper for a 
week. Said this judicious lady : — " Preserves of all kinds 
are expensive and indigestible, and therefore poisonous. 
Therefore " — again — " I shall not give directions for their 
manufacture, except to remark that barberries stewed in 
molasses are economical, and a degree less hurtful than 
most others of that class of compounds." 

Then I reflected that I might, upon the same principle, 
exclude all receipts in which cocoanut is used, because it is 
rank poison to me ; while a dear friend of mine Avould as 
soon touch arsenic as an egg. A large majority of the 
beverages I have named arcs highly medicinal, and deserve 
a place in the housekeeper's calendar on that account. 
Many, so far from being hurtful, are beneficial to a weak 
stomach or a system suffering under general debility. 
JVone which contain alcohol in any shape should he used 
daibj, much less semi- or tri-daily hy a xoell person. 

This principle reduced to practice wovild prove the pre- 
ventive ounce which would cure, all over the land, the need 
for Temperance Societies and Inebriate Asylums. 



THE 8ICK-K00M. 603 

THE SICK-ROOM. 

The sick-chamber sliould be the most qiiiet and cheerful 
in the house — a sacred isle past which the waves of domes- 
tic toil and solicitude glide silently. This is not an easy 
rule to obey. Whoever the invalid may be, whether the 
mother, fiither, or the sweet youngling of the flock, the 
foundations of the household seem thrown out of course 
while the sickness lasts. Yo\i may have good servants and 
kind friends to aid you, but the hitch in the machinery is 
not to be smoothed out by their efforts. The irregularity 
does not annoy you : you do not notice it if the attack be 
severe or dangerous. All other thoughts are swallowed up 
in the all-absorbing, ever-present alarm. You count noth- 
ing an inconvenience that can bring present relief, or possi- 
ble healing to the beloved one ; disdain for yourself rest or 
ease while the shadow hangs above the pillow crushed by 
the helpless head. But when it passes, when the first 
transpoi-t of thankfulness has subsided into an abiding sense 
of safety, the mind swings back to the accustomed pivot, 
and your eyes seem to be suddenly unbound. You find, with 
dismay, that the children have run wild, and the comfort of 
the Avhole fatfiily been neglected dui-ing your confinement to 
the jjost of most urgent duty; with displeasure, that the 
servants have, as you consider, taken advantage of joxir 
situation to omit this task, and to slur over that ; — in 
fine, that nothing has been done well, and so many things 
left altogBther undone, that you are " woi'ried out of your 
senses" — a phrase that too often signifies, out of your 
temper. 

And it is just at this junctiire — when you ai-e called to 
fifty points of attention and labor at once, and are on the 
verge of despair at the conglomeration worse conglomerated 
wising before you ; fid getting to pick up dropped stitches ia 



501 COMMON SENSE. 

the web you were wont to keep so even — that the invalid 
becomes most exacting. " Uni-easonable," you name it to 
yourself, even though it be John himself who calls upon 
you every third minute for some little office of loving-kind- 
ness ; who wants to be amused and fed and petted, and 
made generally comfortable as if he were a six-months-old 
baby ; who never remembers that you must be wearied oi;t 
with watching and anxiety, and that everything below- 
siairs is going to destruction for the want of a balance- 
wheel. The better he loves you the more apt is he to fancy 
that nobody but you can do anything for him ; the more 
certain to crave something which no one else knows how to 
prepare. And when you have strained muscle and patience 
a Hide further to get it ready, and with prudent foresight 
made enough to last for several meals, it is more than 
probable that his fickle taste will suggest something entire- 
ly different for " next time." " Just for a change, you 
know, dear. One gets so tired of eating the same thing so 
often ! " 

He might be more considex'ate — less childish — you 
think, turning away that he may not see your change of 
countenance. When you have taken so much pains to 
suit him exactly ! It is harder yet when he refuses to 
do more than taste the delicacy you hoped would tempt 
him. 

" It is very nice, I suppose, my love," says the poor 
fellow, with the air of a martyr. " But it does not taste 
right, somehow. Maybe the children can dispose of it. If 
I had a lemon ice, or some wine jelly such as my mother 
vised to make, I am sure I could i-elish it. I always did 
detest sick peoples' diet ! " 

If he is very much shaken as to nerves, he will be likely 
to say, " messes.''^ 

" I am fairly wild ! " said a loving wife and moth( r, and 



THE SICK-KOOM. 505 

tluifty housekeeper, to me one day, when I called to see 
hei\ 

She liad just nursed her husband and three children 
through the inlluenza. All had been down with it at once. 
That form of demoniacal possession is generally conducted 
upon the wholesale principle. One of her servants had 
left in disgust at the increased pressure of work ; the 
weather was rainy, blowy, raw ; the streets were muddy, 
and there was no such thing as keeping steps and halls 
clean, while the four invalids wei'e ci'oss as only toothache 
or influenza can make human beings. 

" I am fairly wild ! " said the worthy creature, with 
tears in her eyes. " I cannot snatch a minute, from morn- 
ing until night, to put things straight, and yet I am almost 
tired to death ! I was saying to myself as you came in, that 
I wouldn't try any longer. I would just sit still until the 
dirt was piled up to my chin, and then I would get upon the 
table/" 

How often I have thought of her odd speech since ! 
sometimes with a smile — more frequently Avith a sigh. But 
with all my pity for the nurse and housekeeper, I cannot 
conceal from myself — I would not forget, or let you for- 
get for a moment — the truth that the sick one is the greater ' 
sufferer. It is never pleasant to be laid upon the shelf. 
The resting-place — falsely so-called — is hard and narrow 
and uneven enough, even when the tramp of the outer world 
does not jar the sore and jaded frame ; when there is no ap- 
parent need for the sick person to be upon his feet, and for 
aught that others can see, or he can say, he might just as 
well stay where he is for a month or two. But when, the 
rack of pain having been removed, the dulled perceptions 
of the mind re-awaken to sensitiveness, and there comes to 
his ear the bugle-call of duty — sharp, imperative ; — when 
every idle moment speaks to him of a slain opportimity, 
22 



606 COMilON SENSE. 

and the no longer strong man shakes his fetters with piteous 
cries against fate, do not despise or be impatient with him. 
He is feverish and inconsiderate and capricious because he 
is not himself. You see only the poor wreck left by thp 
demon as he tore his way out of him at the Divine com- 
mand. Gather it up lovingly in your arms, and nurse it 
back to strength and comeliness. The sick should always 
be the chief object of thought and care with all in the 
household. If need be, let the dirt lie chin-deep every- 
where else, so long as it is kept out of tliat one room. 
There be jealous in your care that nothing offends sight 
and smell. 

There should be no smell in a sick-chamber. To avoid 
this, let in the air freely and often. Cologne-water will 
not dispel a foul odor, while disinfectants are noisome in 
themselves. Bathe the patient as frequently and thor- 
oughly as prudence will allow, and change his clothing, 
with the bed- linen, every day. Do not keep the medicines 
where he can see them, nor ever let him witness the mix- 
ing of that wnich he is to swallow. So soon as his meals 
are over, i-emove every vestige of them from the room. 
Even a soiled spoon, lying on table or bureau, may offend 
'his fastidious appetite. Cover the stand or waiter from 
which he eats with a spotless napkin, and serve his food in 
your daintiest ware. 

My heart softens almost to tearfulness when T recall the 
hours, days, weeks, I have myself spent in the chamber of 
languishing, and the ingenuity of tenderness that, from my 
babyhood, has striven to cheat the imprisonment of weari- 
ness, and make me forget pain and uselessness. The pretty 
surprises daily invented for my entertainment ; the exceed- 
ing nicety -svith which they were set out before me ; the 
loving words that nourished my spirit whea the body waa 
faint unto death, — these are events, not slight incidents, in 



* THE SICK-KOOM. 5011 

the book of memory. When I cease to be grateful for thern^ 
or to learn from them how to minister unto others of the 
like consolation, may my heart forget to beat, my right hand; 
lose her cunning ! 

Do not ask your charge what he would like to eat to 
day. He will, of a surety, sicken with the effort at selection^ 
and say, " Nothing ! " But watch attentively for the slight- 
est intimation of a desire for any particular delicacy, and if 
you are assured that it cannot hurt him, procure it, if yon 
can, without letting him guess at your intention. Feed him 
lightly and often, never bringing more into his sight than 
he may safely eat. A big bowl of broth or jelly will either 
tempt him to imprudence, or discourage him. " Am I to 
be burdened with all that ? " cries the affrighted stomach, 
and wiU have none of it. While he is very weak, feed him 
with your own hand, playfully, as you would a child, talk- 
ing cheerily of something besides his food, and coaxing him 
into taking the needed nutriment as only a wife and mother 
can, or as nobody but John could beguile you to effort in 
the same direction. 

Study all pleasant and soothing arts to while away tho 
time, and keep worry of eveiy kind away from him. A 
trifle at which yon can la\igh will be a burden to the en- 
feebled mind and body, and he has nothing to do but lie 
still and roll it over until it swells into a monntain. When 
he can be removed without danger, let him have his raeals 
in another room, changing the air of each when he is not 
in it. Every one who has suffered from long sickness 
knows the peculiar loathing attendant \ipon the idea that aU 
food is tainted with the atmosphere of the chamber in which 
it is served, and if eaten in bed, tastes of the mattress aiid 
pillows. The room and all in it may be clean, fresh, aad 
sweet, but the fancy cannot be dismissed. And it is wii,ei 
to humor than to reason with most sick fancies. 



508 COMMON SENSE. 

A hired nuide is a useful, often a necessary thing, bul 
while you are upon your feet, and mistress of your own 
Rouse, delegat i to no one the precious task of catering for 
the dear sufferer. It is an art in itself I hope a practical 
knowledge of it will be taught in Women's Medical Colleges, 
when they are an established " institution " with us. 

I wish it were proper to record here the name of one ol 
the kindest and best family physicians I ever knew, who 
had chai'ge of my not very firm health during my girlhood. 
He owed much — I suppose no one ever knew really how 
much — of his success in his practice to his tact and skill in 
devising palatable and suitable nourishment for his patients. 
I well remember the childish pleasure with which I would 
hear him say when the violence of the attack had passed — 
*' Now, my dear child, we must begin v/ith kitchen physic !" 
and the glow of amused expectation Avitli which I used to 
watch him, as, with an arch show of mystery, he would 
beckon my mother from the roorii to receive his " prescrij)- 
tion ; " the impatience with which I awaited the result of 
the conference, and the zest with wliich I ate whatever he 
ordered. 

If I could have persuaded him to manage this depart- 
ment of my work, it would win for me the degree of M.D. 
with a new meanincr — Mistress of Dietetics. 



THE SICK-EOOM. 

Beep Tea. ^ 

1 lb. lean beef, cut into small pieces. 

Put into ajar without a drop of water; cover tightly, 
and set in a pot of cold water. Heat gradually to a boil, 
and continue this steadily for three or four hours, until the 



THE SICK-KOOM. ^ 50^ 

meat is like wliite rags, and the juice all drawn out. Sea- 
son with salt to taste, and when cold, skim. The patient 
will often jirefer this ice-cold to hot. Serve with Albert 
biscuit or thin " wafers," unleavened, or made by a receipt 
given under the head of Bread. 

Mutton Broth. *fi 

1 lb. lean miitton or lamb, cut small. 
'1 quart water — cold. 

1 tablespoouful rice, or barley, soaked in a very little 

warm water. 
4 tablespoonfuls milk. 
Salt and pepper, with a little chopped parsley. 

Boil the meat, unsaltpd, in the water, keeping it closely 
covered, until it falls to pieces. Strain it out, add the 
soaked barley or rice ; simmer half an hour, stirring often ; 
stir in the seasoning and the milk, and simmer five minutes 
after it heats up well, taking cave it does not burn. 

Serve hot, with cream crackers. 

Chicken Broth. »^ 

Is excellent made in the same manner as mutton, crack- 
ing the bones well before you put in the fowl. 

4 

Veal and Sago Broth. 

2 lbs. knuckle of veal, cracked all to pieces. 

2 quarts of cold water. 

3 tablespoonfuls best pearl sago, soaked in a cup of cold 

water. 
1 cup cream, heated to boiling. 
Yolks of two eggs, beaten light. 

BoU tho veal and water in a covered saucepan very 



510- COMMON SENSE. 

slowly until reduced to one quart of liquid ; strain, season 
with salt, and stir in the soaked sago (having previously 
warmed it by setting for half an hora- in a saiicejjan of 
boiling water, and stirred from time to time). Simmer 
half an hour, taking care it does not burn ; beat in the 
cream and eggs ; give one good boil up. and turn out. 
This is excellent for consumptives. 

Beef and Saco Broth. 

2 lbs. of beef — cut up small. 

2 quarts of water. 

1 cup of sago, soaked soft in a little lukewarm water. 

Yolks of three eggs. 

Salt to taste. 

Stew the beef until it falls to pieces ; strain it out, salt 
ehe liquid and stir in the sago. Simmer gently one hour, 
stirring often. Add the beaten yolks ; boil up well and 
serve. 

This is a strengthening and nice soup. Eat with dry 
toast. . 

Arrowroot Jelly (2^lain). ^J* 

1 cup hoiling water. 

2 heaping teaspoonfuls of best Bermuda arrowi'oot. 

1 teaspoonful lemon juice. • 

2 teaspoonfuls of white sugar. 

Wet the arrowroot in a little cold water, and rub 
smooth. Then stir into the hot, which should be on the 
fire and actually boiling at the time, with the sugar already 
melted in it. Stir until clear, boiling steadily all the while, 
and f\dd the lemon. Wet a cup in cold water, and pour in 
the j';lly to form. Eat cold with sugar and cream flavored 
with rosewater. 



THE SICK-ROOM. 511 

An invaluable pi-eparation in cases where wine is for 
bidden. 

Arrowroot Wike Jelly. »J< 

1 cup boiling water. 

2 heaping teaspoonfuls arrowroot. 
2 " white sugar. 

1 tablespoonful brandy, or 3 tablespoonfuls of wine. 

An excellent corrective to weak bowels. 

Arrowroot Blanc-mange. »J« 

1 cupful boiling milk. 

2 dessertspoonfuls best arrowroot, rubbed smooth in 

cold water. 
2 teaspoonfuls white sugar. 
"Vanilla or other essence. 

Boil until it thickens well, stirring all the while. Eat 
cold with cream, flavored ^^^.t]l rosewater, and sweetened to 
taste. 

Sago 

May be substituted for arrowroot in any of the forego- 
ing receipts, when you have soaked it an hour in water 
poured over it cold, and gradually warmed by setting the 
cup containing it in hot water. Boil rather longer than 
you do the arro^vl•oot. 

Sago Gruel. »J< 
2 cups water. 

2 tablespoonfuls sago. 

3 teaspoonfuls white sii<. iir. 

1 glass of wine. *■ 

1 tablespoonful lemon juice. 
Nutmeg to taste, and a pinch of salt. 



519 COItllSION SENSE. 

Put the sago in tlie water while cold, and warm hy 
Betting in a saucepan of boiling water. Stir often, and lei 
it soften and heat for one honr. Then boil ten minutes, 
stirring all the while ; add the sugar, wine, and lemon, and 
pour into a bowl or mould to cool. Eat warm, if preferred. 
The wine and nutmeg should be omitted if the patient ia 
feverish. 

Indian Meal Gruel. »J« 

2 quarts of boiling water. 

1 cup of Indian meal, and 

1 tablespoonful flour, wet iip with cold water. 

Salt to taste — and, if you like, sugar and nutmeg. 

"Wet the meal and flour to a smooth paste, and stir into 
the water while it is actually boiling. Boil slowly half an 
hour, stirring up well from the bottom. Season with salt 
to taste. Some sweeten it, but I like it better Avith a little 
pepper added to the salt. 

If a cathartic is desired, omit the wheat flour altogether. 

Oatmeal Gruel 
Is made in the same way. 

Milk and Rice Gruel. 

1 quart boiling milk. 

2 tablespoonfuls (heaping) of ground rice, wet with cold 

milk. 
1 saltspoonful of salt. 

Stir in the rice-paste and boil ten minutes, stirring all 
the while. Season with sugar and nutmeg, and eat warm 
with cream. 

You may use Indian meal instead of rice-flour, whicl: 
is an asti-ingent. In this case, boil half an hour. 



the 6ick-r00m. 513 

Dried Flour for Teething Children'. 

1 cup of flour, tied in a stout muslin bag and dropped 
into cold water, then set over the fire, 

J3oil three hours steadily. Turn out the flour ball 
and dry in the hot sun all day ; or, if you need it at once, 
dry in a moderate oven without shutting the door. 

To use it- 
Grate a tablespoouful for a cupful of boiling milk and 
water (half and half). "Wet up the flour with a very little 
cold water, stir in and boil five minutes. Put in a little 
salt. 

Tapioca Jelly, ^ ( Visri/ good.) 

1 cup of tapiocti. 

3 cups of cold water. 

Juice of a lemon, and a pinch of the grated peel. 

Sweeten to taste. 

Soak the tapioca in the water four hours. Set within 
a saucepan of boiling water; poiir more luke-warm water 
over the tapioca if it has absorbed too much of the liquid, 
and heat, stirring frequently. If too thick after it begins 
to clear, put in a very little boiling water. When quite 
clear, put in the sugar and lemon. Pour into moulds. Eat 
cold, \vith cream flavored with rosewater and sweetened. 

Tapioca Blanc-mange, tj* 

1 cup of tapioca soaked in 2 cups cold water. 

3 cups boiling milk. 

3 tablespooufuls white sugar. 

Kosewater or vanilla. 

Soak the tapioca four hours, and stir, with the water in 
which it was soaked, into the boiling milk. Sweeten and 

22* 



514 COISIMON SENSE. 

boil slowly, stirrmg all tlie wliile, fifteen minutes. Take 
off, flavor and pour into moulds. 

Eat cold with cream. Wasli tapioca well before soaking. 

Arrowroot Custard. (iVice.) 

2 cups of boiling milk. 

3 heapiug teaspoonfuls arrowroot, wet up witli a little 

cold milk, 
2 tablespoonfuls white sugar, beaten with the egg. 

1 egg, very well beaten. 

Mix the arrowroot-paste with the boiling milk ; stir 
three minutes ; take from the fire and whip in the egg and 
sugar. Boil two minutes longer, flavor with vanilla or 
rosewater, and pour into moulds. 

Rice-Flour Milk. 

2 cups of milk, boiling, 

2 tablespoonfuls rice-flour, wet up -with cold milk. 

2 " white sugar. 

Boil ten minutes, stirring all the while, and flavor to 
tdste. Eat warm with cream. 

Sago Milk. bJ« 

3 tablespoonfuls sago, soaked in a large cup cold water 

one hour. 
3 cujDS boiling milk. 
Sweeten and flavor to taste. 

Simmer slowly half an hour. Eat warm. 

Tapioca Milk 
la made in the same way. 



THE SICK-EOOM. 515 



Boiled Eice. ^ 



■J cup whole rice, boiled in just enough, water to cover it 
1 « of milk. 
A little salt. 



When the rice is nearly done, turn off the water, add 
the milk and simmer — taking care it does not scorch — until 
the milk boils up well. Salt, and beat in the egg. 

Eat warm with cream, sugar, and nutmeg. 

Panada. *J« 

6 Boston crackers, split. i 

2 tablespoonfuls white sugar. 
A good pinch of salt, and a little nutmeg. 
Enough boiling water to cover them well. 

Split the crackers, and pile in a bowl in layers, salt and 
sugar scattered among them. Cover with boiling water 
and set on the hearth, with a close toj) over the bowl, for 
at least one hour. The crackers should be almost clear 
and soft as jelly, but not broken. 

Eat from the ))owj, with more sugar sprinkled in if you 
wish it. If properly made, this panada is very nice. 

Bread Panada, or Jelly. »J« 

Pare some slices of stale baker's bread and toast nicely, 
without burning. Pile in a bowl, sprinkling sugar and a 
very little salt between ; cover well with boiling water, 
and set, with a tight lid upon the top, in a jmn of boiling 
water. Simmer gently, until the contents of the bowl are 
like jelly. Eat warm \ni\i powdered sugar and nutmeg. 



516 COMMON &EN8E. 

Chicken Jelly. ( Very nourishing.) »J« 

Half a raw cliicken, pounded with a mallet, bones and 

meat together. 
Plenty of cold water to cover it well — about a quart. 

Heat slowly in a covered vessel, and let it simmer until 
the meat is iu white rags and the liquid reduced one-half. 
Strain and press, first through a cullender, then through a 
coarse cloth. Salt to taste, and pepper, if you think best ; 
return to the fire, and simmer five minutes longer. Skim 
when cool. Give to the patient cold — just from the ice — • 
with unleavened wafers. Keep on the ice. You can make 
into sandwiches by pi;tting the jelly between thin slices of 
bread spread lightly -with butter. 

Calves' Feet Broth. 

2 calves' feet. 

2 quai*ts cold water. 

1 egg, beaten up with two tablespoonfuls milk for each 

cupful of broth. 
Pepper and salt. 

Boil the feet to shreds; strain the liquor through a 
double muslin bag ; season to taste, and set by for use, aa 
you need it. "Warm by the small qiiantity, allowing to 
each cupful a beaten egg and two tablespoonfuls of milk. 
Give a good boil up to cook these, and serve with thin, crisp 
toast. If the patient can take it, a dash of lemon -juice im- 
proves the broth. 

Toast "Water, i^ 

Slices of toast, nicely browned, ^^ithout a symptom of 

burning. 
Enoiigh boilmof water to cover them. 



TnE SICK-EOOM. 517 

Cover closely, and let them steep until cold. Sti-ain the 
water, sweeten to vaste, and put a piece of ice in each glass- 
ful. If the physician thinks it safe, add a little lemon- 
juice. 

Apple Water. ►Ja 

1 large juicy pippin, the most finely-flavored you can 
get. 

3 cups of cold water — 1 quart if the apple is very 

large. 
■ Pare and quarter the apple, but do not core it. Put it 
on the fire in a tin or porcelain saucepan with the water, 
and boll, closely covered, until the apple stews to pieces. 
Strain the liquor at once, pressing the apple hard in the cloth. 
Strain this again through a finer bag, and set away to cool. 
Sweeten with white sugar, and ice for drinking. 
It is a refreshing and palatable di'ink. 

Jelly "Water. ^ 

1 large teaspoonful currant or cranberry jelly. 
1 goblet ice-water. 

Beat up well for a fever-patient. 

Wild cherry or blackberry jelly is excellent, prepared 
in like mamier for tliose suffering with summer complaint. 

Flax-seed Lemonade. >^ 

4 tablespoonfuls flax-seed (whole). 

1 quart boiling water poured upon the flax-seed. 
Juice of two lemons, leaving out the peel. 
Sweeten to taste. 

Steep three hours in a covered pitcher. If too iMck, 
put in cold water with the lemon-juice and sugar. Ice for 
drinking. 

It is admii'able for colds. 



618 common sense. 

Slippery-elji Bark Tea. 

Break tlie bark into bits, pour boiling water over it ; 
. cover and let it infuse until cold. Sweeten, ice, and take 
for svimmer disorders, or add lemon-juice and drink for a 
bad cold. 

Apple Toddy, t^ 

Boil a large juicy pijipin in a qviart of water, and when 
it has broken to pieces strain off the water. While it is 
itill boiling-hot, add a glass of fine old whiskey, a little 
•^mon-juice, and sweeten to taste. 
Take hot at bed-time for influenza. 

Milk Punch. »J* 

1 tumbler of milk, well sweetened. 

2 tablespoonfuls best brandy, well stirred in. 

I have known veiy sick patients to be kept alive for days 
it a time by this mixture, and nothing else, until Nature 
jould rally her forces. Give very cold with ice. 

Egg and Milk Punch i^ 

[s made by the preceding receipt, with an egg beaten 
very light with the sugar, and stii'red in before the brandy 
is added. 

Iceland or Irish Moss Lemonade, t^ 

1 handful Irish or Iceland moss, washed in five waters. 

2 quarts boiling water, poured upon the moss, and left 

until cold. 
2 lemons, peeled and sliced, leaving out the peel. 
Sweeten veiy well and ice. 

Do not strain, and if it thicken too miicli, add cold 
water. 

Excellent for feverish colds and all pulmonary troubles 



THE SICK-EOOM. 519 

Iceland or Irish Moss Jelly, t^ 

1 handful moss, washed in five waters, and soaked an 
hour. 

1 quart boiling water. 

2 lemons — the juice only. 
1 glass of AAdne. 

^ teaspoonful cinnamon. (Measure scantily.) 

Soak the washed moss in a very little cold water ; stir 
into the boiling, and simmer until it is dissolved. Sweeten, 
flavor, and strain into moulds. You may use two glasses 
of cider instead of one of wme for a fever-patient, putting 
in a little less water. 

Good for colds, and very nourishing. 

Sea-moss Blanc-mange 

Is made in the same way, using boiling milk instead of 
water, and leaving out the lemons and wine. Flavor with 
vanilla or rose-water. 

Dry Toast. 

Pare off the crust from stale light bread ; slice half an 
inch thick and toast quickly. Graham bread is very nice 
toasted. 

Butter lightly if the patient can eat butter. 

Milk Toast. ►{« 

Toast as just directed ; dip each slice, as it comes from 
the toaster, in boiling water ; butter, salt slightly, and lay 
in a deep covered dish. Have ready in a saucepan enough 
boiling milk to cover all well. Wlien your slices are packed 
salt this very slightly ; melt in it a bit of biitter and pour 
over them Cover closely and let it stand five minutes 



520 COMMON SENSE. 

before using it. It is excellent when made of Grahan 

bi'ead. 

This is a good dish for a family tea as -well as for inva* 

Uds. 

Unleavened Biscuit, or Wafers, i^ 

Mix good, dry flour to a stiff dough with milk ; salt, 
and roll out thin. Cut into round cakes and roll these 
again almost as thin as lettei'-paper. Bake very quickly. 

They may also be mixed with water. These are very 
sim^ile and palatable, and go well with all kinds of broth, 
especially oyster-soup. 

Dried Rusk. (See Dread.) 

Beef Steak and Mutton Chops. 

Clioose the tenderest cuts and broil over a clear hot fire 
with your wisest skill. Let the steak be rare — the chops 
well-done. Salt and pepper, lay between two hot plates 
three minutes, and serve to your patient. If he is very 
weak, do not let him swallow anything except the juice, 
•when he has chewed the meat well. 

The essence of rare beef — roast or broiled — thus ex- 
pressed, is considered by some physicians to be more 
strengthening than beef-tea, prepared in the usual manner. 

Sangaree or Porteree. 

One-third wine or porter mixed with two-thirds cold 
water. Sweeten, grate nutmeg on the top, and ice. 

Serve dry toast with it. Taken hot, it is good for a sud- 
den cold. 

Wine . Whey. 

1 pint boiling milk. 

1 large glass pale wine, poured in when the milk is 
scalding hot. Boil up once, remove from the fire and let it 



THE SICK-KOOM. 52] 

cool. Do not stir it after the wine is pnt in. "When tho 
curd forms, draw oif the whey and sweeten. 

Herb Teas 

Are made by infusing the dried or green leav6s and stalks 
in boiling water, and letting them stand until cold. Sweetec 
to taste. 

Sage tea, sweetened with honey, is good for a sore throat, 
used as a gargle, with a small bit of alum dissolved in it. 

Catnip tea is the best panacea for infant ills, in the way 
of cold and colic, known to nurses. 

Pennyroyal tea will often avert tlie unpleasant conse- 
quences of a sudden check of jierspiration, or the evils in- 
duced by ladies' thin shoes. 

Chamomile and gentian teas are excellent tonics taken 
either cold or hot. 

The tea made from blackberry-root is said to be good for 
summer disorders. That from green strawberi-y leaves is an 
admirable and soothing wash for a cankered mouth. 

Tea of ))arsley-root scraped and steeped in boiling water, 
taken warm, will often cure strangury ^nd kindred affec- 
tions, as will that made from dried pumpkin-seed. 

Tansy and rue teas ai'e useful in cases of colic, as are 
fennel seeds stee])ed in brandy. 

A tea of damask-rose leaves, dry or fresh, will usually 
subdue any simple case of summer complaint in infants. 

Mint tea, made from the gi-een leaves, crushed in cold 
or hot water and sweetened, is palatable and healing to the 
stomach and bowels. 

Mint Julep. »J« 

Some sprigs of green mint, slightly bruised in a tumbler 
with a teaspoon. Put in a generous teaspoonful of white 



522 COMMON SENSE. 

sugar ; add gradually, stirring and rvibbing lightly, enough 
water to fill the glass three-quarters of the way to the top. 
Fill up with pounded ice ; stir hard ; pour into a largei 
glass that you may shake up well, aud put in two table- 
spoonfuls fine brandy. 

This is called a " hail-storm julep." 

Eau Sucre. ►J* 

Dissolve three or four lumps of loaf sugar in a glass of 
ice-water, and take a teaspoonful every few minutes for a 
"tickling in the throat," or a backing cough. Keep it ice- 
cold. 

A simple, but often an efficacious remedy. 



THE NURSERY. 

All food intended for infants should be very thoroughly 
cooked. The numerous varieties of farinaceous substances — 
biscotine, farina, rice-flour, arrowroot, etc., however nourish- 
ing may be their properties when rightly prepared, are harsh 
and drastic when underdone. Unless you have a nurse 
whom you know for yourself to be faithful aud experienced, 
always superintend the cooking of baby's food. It can do 
no harm — it may prevent much — if you examine it every 
day to see that it is right as to quality and quantity. Do 
not aim at variety in this branch of your profession. Con- 
fine a child under three years of age to a very limited bill 
of fare. His stomach is too delicate an organ to be tam- 
pered with. Let milk — scalded or boiled, as a rule — be 
the staple, mixed \vith farina, barley, ov something of the 
sort. Let him munch Graham bread and light crackers 
freely. Remove far from him hot bread and griddle-cakes 



THE NUKSERY. f>23 

Wlien lie has cut his carnivorous teeth, Nature says^ 
" This creature wants meat." And Nature's supi)ly is sekloiu 
in advance of the demand. If he did not need what the 
teeth are designed to chew, you maybe sure they woukl not 
be given him. Grant him the novel food sparingly and with 
discretion as to kind. Rare beef and well-boiled mutton, 
tender roast or boiled chicken and turkey are safe. With- 
hold fried meats of every description. Do not let him touch 
veal or pork in any shape. Mince the meat very finely to 
save his digestive apparatus all unnecessary work. Mealy 
old potatoes-;-7^e^;e?• new or waxy — young onions, boiled in 
two watei's; fresh asparagus, green peas, and diy sweet po- 
tatoes should suffice for vegetables, with, of course, rice and 
hominy. For dessert, once iii a while, a simple custard, 
a taste of home-made ice-cream, rice and farina puddings, 
Graham hasty pudding; the inner part of a well-roasted 
apple, and, in their season, ripe peaches and apples, will not 
harm him, taken in moderation, if he be well and strong. 

Pare the fruit ahnctys. The skin of an apple is as bad for 
him as a bit of your kid gloves would be ; that of a grajje 
more indigestible than sole-leather. Iiaisuis — "skins and 
all" — are unfit 'for anybody to eat. Pulp and pits, they 
are poisonous for baby. Ditto, pickles, pastiy, and pre- 
serves. Ditto, most kinds of cake and all sorts of fruit 
puddings. 

Give him light suppers, and put him to bed early in a 
dark room. He will not grow better in a glare of artificial 
light than mil your camellias and azalias. 

Always see for yourself that his last waking thoughts are 
pleasant ; that he shuts his eyes at peace with the world 
and in love with you ; that his feet are warm, his stomach 
easy, and his body not overloaded with blankets and quilts ; 
also, that the nuT-seiy is clean and freshly aired. These are 
better prescriptions for sound slumber than all the old 



62,4 COMMON SENSE. 

wives' fables of the excellent properties of tliat pernicioua 
drug — Soothing Syrup. 

Fakina. *^ 
1 cup hoiling water. 
1 " fresh milk. 

1 large tablespoonful Hecker's Farina, wet up with cold 

water. 

2 teaspoonfuls wliite sugar. 
A pinch of salt. 

Stir the farina into the boiling water {sliglitly salted) in 
the farina kettle {i. e., one boiler set within another, the 
latter filled with hot v/ater). Boil fifteen minutes, stirring 
constantly until it is well-thickened. Then add the milk, 
stirring it in .gradually, and boil fifteen minutes longer. 
Sweeten, and give to the child so soon as it is cool enough. 

You may make enough in the morning to last all day; 
warming it up with a little hot milk as you want it. Keep 
in a cold place. Some of the finest children I have ever 
seen were reared ujjon this diet. Do not get it too • sweet, 
and cook it well. Be sure the farina is sweet and diy. 

Barley. 

It sometimes happens that milk disagrees with a delicate 
infant so serioiisly that it is necessary to substitute some 
other article of diet for a few days. I have known barley- 
water to be used, in such cases, with great success. 

2 cups hoiling water. 

2 tablespoonfuls pearl barley — picked over and washed. 

A pinch of salt. 

2 teaspoonfuls white sugar — not heaping. 

Soak the bai-ley half an hour in a very little lukewarm 
water, and stir, without draining, iijto the boiling water, 



THE NUKSEKT. 525 

salted very slightly. Simmer one houi", stirring often, and 
strain before sweetening. 

Arrowroot, i^ 

1 cup of boiling water. 

1 " fresli milk. 

2 teaspoonfuls best Bermuda arrowi-oot, wet with cold 

water. 

1 small pinch of salt, 

2 even teaspoonfuls white sugar, dissolved in the milk. 

Stir the arrowroot paste into' the salted boiling water ; 
stir and boil five minutes or nntil it is clear; add the 
sweetened milk, and boil ten minutes, slowly, still stirring. 

If the child has fever, or cannot digest milk, substitute 
hot water for it. It is, however, a dangerous experiment 
to forbid milk altogether for an infant. I shovild rather 
diminish the quantity, putting in, say, one-third or one- 
foui-tli as much as the receipt names, and filling up with 
boiling water. 

Rice Jelly, i^ 

5 cxip whole rice, well-washed and soaked two hours in 
a little warm water ; then added, with the water, to 
that in the kettle. 

3 j)ints cold water. 

1 small pinch of salt, pixt into the water. 
Swefeten to taste with loaf sugar. 

Simmer the rice half an hour; then boil until it is a 
smooth paste, and the water is reduced one-half. Strain 
through double tarlatan, sweeten, and give to the child. 

This is an admirable preparation for an infant suffering 
with weakness of the bowels. If there is no fever, you may 
put one-third part milk, boiled with the rice. Give a few 
spoonfuls every hour or half hour. 



626 common sense. 

Milk Jlsd Bread. »J* 

•^ Clip boiled milk. 

2 tablespoonfuls stale Graliam bread. 

A very little sugar. 

Ci'umble the bread into the boiled milk, sweeten, and 
when cool eno\igh, feed to the child with a spoon. 

Wheatex Grits, t^ 

4 tablespoonfuls grits (cracked wheat) soaked in a little 
cold water one hour, and then put into the kettle. 
1 quart boiling water. 
1 cup milk. 
A pinch of salt. 

Boil the soaked grits in the quart of water one hour, 
stirring up often ; add the milk and boil half an hour 
longer. Sweeten to taste, and if the child is well, pour 
cream over it. This is designed for children over a year 
old. It is slightly cathartic ; especially if the milk be 
omitted, and is most useful in regulating the bowels. When 
this can be done without drugs, it is far better. 

HOiMiNY AND Milk. •J* 

■^ cup small hominy. 

1 scant quart of cold water. 

Pinch of salt. 

Boil one hour, stirring often. Wliile hot, mix some 
soft with new milk, sweeten to taste and feed to baby with 
a spoon. 

This is also relaxing to the bowels, and should not be 
given if the child is disoosed to summer complaint. 



THE NUKSEBT. 527 

^ Graham Hasty Pudding. *f« 

1 cup Graham flour, wet up with cold water. 

1 large cup hoilinr/ v/ater and same quantity of milk. 

1 saltspoonful of salt. 

Stir the wet flour into the boiling Avater, slightly salted. 
Boil ten minutes, stirring almost constantly. Add the 
milk and cook, after it has come again to a boil, ten min- 
utes longer. Give with sugar and milk for breakfast. 

Eaten with cream, nutmeg, and powdered sugar, this is 
a good plain dessert for grown people as well as children. 

Rice Flour Hasty Pudding 

Is made as above, substituting two heaping tablespoon- 
fuls rice flour for the Graham. 

Milk Porridge. 

1 tablespoonful Indian meal \ wet to a paste with cold 

1 " white flour ) water. 

2 cups boiling water. 
2 " milk. 

A good pinch of salt. 

Boil the paste in the hot water twenty minutes ; add the 
milk and cook ten minutes more, stirring often. 

Eat with sugar and milk, stirred in while hot. • 

Mush and Milk. 

1 cup Indian meal, wet up "with cold water. 

2 quarts cold water. 
Salt to taste. 

Boil two hours ; stirring often with a wooden spoon or 
a stick. 

To be eaten hot with milk and sugar. 



528 common sense. 

Condensed IMilk. ^ 

This is pci'liaps the safest substitute for the "good milk 
from one cow," which few mothers in town can procure. 
Keep the can in a cool jjlace and mix according to direc- 
tions. 



SUNDRIES. 
Cleaning Pots, Kettles, and Tins. 

Boil a double handful of hay or grass in a new iron pot, 
before attempting to cook with it ; scrub out with soap and 
sand ; then set on full of fair water, and let it boil half au 
hour. After this, you may use it without fear. As soon 
as you emj)ty a pot or frying-pan of that which has been 
cooked in it, fill with hot or cold water (hot is best) and 
set back upon the fire to scald thoroughly. 

New tins should stand near the fire with boiling water 
in them, in which has been dissolved a spoonful of soda, 
for an hour ; then be scoured inside ^vith soft soap ; after- 
ward rinsed with hot water. Keep them clean by rubbing 
•with sifted tyoocZ-ashes, or whitening. 

Copper utensils should be cleaned with brickdust and 
flannel. 

Never set a vessel in the pot-closet without cleaning and 
■wiping it thoroughly. If grease be left in it, it will grow 
rancid. If set aside wet, it is apt to rust. 

Knives. 

Clean with a soft flannel and Bath brick. If rusty, use 
■wood-ashes, rubbed on with a newly cut bit of Irish potato. 
This wiU remove spots when nothing else will. Keep your 



auNDKiEs. 629 

best set ■wrapped in soft white paper; then in linen, in . 
drawer out of damp and dust. 

Never dip tlie ivory handles of knives in hot water. 

Silver. 

Wash, after each meal, all that is soiled, in very hot soft 
water, with hard soap. Wipe hard and quickly on a clean 
towel ; then polish with dry flannel. If discolored with 
egg, mustard, spinach, or beans, or by any other means, 
rub out the stain with a stiff toothbrush (used only for this 
purpose), and silver soap. 

For years I have used no other preparation for cleaning 
silver than the Indexical silver soap, applied as I have 
described. After rubbing \nt\\ a stiff lather made with 
this, wash off with hot water, wipe and polish while hot. 
There is no need for the weekly silver cleaning to be an 
event or a bugbear, if a little care and watchfulness be 
observed after each meal. Silver should never be allowed 
to grow dingy. If Bridget or Chloe will not attend prop- 
erly to this matter, take it in hand yourself. Have your 
own soajvciips — tAvo of them — one with common soap, the 
other with a cake of silver soap in the bottom. Have for 
one a mop, for the other a stiff brush — a toothbrush is best. 
Use your softest towels for silver. 

Besides being clean and easy of application, the silver 
soap will not wear away the metal as will whiting or chalk, 
or plate-powder, however finely pulverized. 

China and Glass. 

Thei'e are few of the minor crooks la the lot of the 
carefvd houscAvife that cause her more anxiety and move 
discouragement than the attempt to teach domestics how to 
wash up dishes, 
23 



530 COMMON SENSE. 

"I've heard that Mrs. is very exact about soma 

tilings, such as washing up dishes and tlie likes of that ! '• 
said a woman to me, with an affected laugh, having called 
to apply for the then vacant position of cook in my kitchen. 
She had high recommendations, a whine engrafted upon 
ner native brogue, and spoke of me in the third person — ^a 
trick of cheap (and bogus) gentiUty that tries my nerves 
and temper to the veiy marrow of my spine. " I was 

a-saying to myself, as I came along, that Mrs. must 

have been vei'i/ onlucky in her girls if she had to tache 
them how to wash up dishes. I always thought that was 
one of the things that came kinder nat'ral to every cook." 

" Mrs, 's" experience goes to prove that the wrong 

way of doing this must "come natural" to the class men- 
tioned, and that Nature is mighty in woman. The fact 
that the right way is not to pile unrinsed dishes and 
plates in a big pan with a loose bit of soap on top, and 
pour lukewarm water over all ; then with a bit of rag to 
splash said water over each separately, and make another 
pile of them upon the kitchen-table, until the last is drawn, 
reeking with liquid grease, sticky and streaming, from the 
now filthy puddle of diluted swill ; then to rub them lightly 
and leisurely with one towel — be they many or few — is as 
difficult of compi'ehension to the scuUionly mind as would 
be a familiar lecture upon the^j)ons asinoi'um. 

Yet the right and only neat method is so simple and 
easy ! Rinse the greasy plates, and whatever is sticky with 
sugar or other sweet, in hot water and ti'ansfer to a larger 
pan of 2?e?-y hot. Wash glass first ; next silver; then china 
■ — one article at a time, although you may put sevei'al in 
the pan. Hav^e a mop with a handle ; rub upon the soap 
(over which the water should have been poured) until you 
have strong suds ; wash both sides of plate and saucer, and 
wipe before 2'>utting it out of your hand. Draining leaves 



SUNDKIES. 531 

streaks win cli can be felt by sensitive finger-tijis, if not 
seen. If china is rough to the touch, it is dirty. Hot, 
clean suds, a dry, clean towel, and quick wiping leave it 
bright and shining. KoU your glasses around in the water, 
filling them as soon as they touch it, and yon need never 
crack one. A lady did once explain the dingiuess of her 
goblets to me by saying that she was "afraid to put them 
in hot water. It rots glass and makes it so tender ! I 
prefer to have them a little cloudy." This is litei-ally true 
— that she said it, I mean. Certainly not that a year's soak 
in hot water could make glass tender. 

Washing "Windows. 

Dissolve a little washing-soda in the water if the glass 
is very dim with smoke or dirt. Do not let it run on the 
sash, but wash each pane with old flannel ; dry quickly 
with a soft, clean towel, wiping the corners with especial 
care. Polish Avith chamois skin, or newspapers rubbed soft 
between the hands. 

To Clean Carpets. 

Sprinkle the carpet with tea leaves ; sweeji well ; then 
use soap and soft, warm water for the grease and dirt spots. 
This freshens up old carpets marvellously. Rub the wet 
spots diy with a clean cloth. 

To Clean Paint. 

Scour with a flat brush, less harsh than that used for 
floors, using warm soft suds ; before it dries wash off" with 
old flannel dijiped in clean cold water, and wipe dry with a 
linen towel or cloth. Go through the whole pi'ocess quickly, 
that the a\ ater may not dry upon and streak the paint. 



532 COMMON SENSE. 

To Keep "Woolens. 

Beat out all the dust, and sun for a day; shake very 
hard ; fold neatljand piu — or, what is better, sew up — closely 
in muslin or linen cloths, putting a small lump of gum 
camj)hor in the centre of each bundle. Wi-ap newspapers 
abouc all, pinning so as to exclude dust and insects. 

These are really all the precautions necessary for the 
Bafety even of furs, if they are strictly obeyed. But you 
may set moths at defiance if you can, in addition to these, 
secure, as a packing-case, a whiskey or alcohol barrel but 
lately emptied, and still strongly scented by the liquor. 
Have a close head, and fit it in neatly. Set away in the 
garret, and think no more of your treasures until next 
winter. 

To Wasu Doubtful Calicoes. 

Put a teaspoonful of sugar of lead into a pailful of 
■water, and soak fifteen minutes before washing. 

To Clean a Cloth Coat. 

Bub soap upon the wristbands and collar ; dip them in 
boiling-hot suds — and scrub with a stiff clean brush. 
Treat tlie grease and dirt spots in the same way. Change 
the suds for clean and hot- as it gets dirty. Wet and brush 
the whole coat, the right way of the cloth, with fresh suds, 
when you have scoured out the spots, adding three or four 
tablespoonfuls of alcohol to the water. Stretch the sleeves, 
pocket-holes, wristbands, and collar into shape, folding the 
sleeves as if they had been ironed, also the collar. Lay 
upon a clean cloth, spread upon the table or floor, and let 
it get perfectly dry in the shade, turning over three or four 
times without disturbing the folds. 



SUNDRIES. 533 

To Clean Silk. 

To Remove Grease Spots. — Scrape Venetian or French 
chalk fine ; moisten to a stilF paste with soa])-suds ; make it 
into flat cakes by pressing between two boards, and dry in 
the sun or oven. Keep these for use. When you need 
them, scrape one to powder and cover the spot with it, lay- 
ing the silk upon a fine clean linen or cotton cloth. Lay 
two or three folds of tissue-paper upon the chalk, and 
press it with a hot iron for a minute or more, taking care 
it does not touch the silk. Raise the paper and scrape off 
the gi*ease with the chalk. Split a A'isiting-card, and rub 
the place where the spot was, with the inside, to restore the 
lustre. The silk should be i)ressed on the wrong side. 

If the spot be discovered at once, simply rub the wrong 
side hard with powdered French chalk, and leave it to wear 
off. 

To Wash SilL— Mix together 

2 cups cold water. 
1 tablespoonful honey. 
1 " soft soap. 

1 wineglass alcohol. 

Shake up well ; lay the silk, a breadth at a time, on a 
table, and sponge both sides with this, rubbing it well in ; 
shake it about well aud up and down in a tub of cold water; 
flap it as dry as you can, but do not wring it. Hang it by 
llie edges, not the middle, until fit to iron. Iron on the 
wrong side while it is very damp. 

Black and dark or sober-colored silks may be success- 
fully treated it this way. 

To Smooth Wrinkled Silk. — Sponge on the right side 
with very weak gum-arabic Avatcr, and iron on the wrong 
side. 



534 COMMON SENSE. 

To Renew "Wrinkled Crape. 

Stretch over a basin of boiling water, holding it smooth, 
but not tight, over the top, and shifting as the steam fairly 
penetrates it. Fold, while damp, in the original creases, 
and lay under a heavy book or board to dry. It will look 
almost as well as new. 

To Restore the Pile of Velvet. 

If but slightly pressed, treat as you would crape. Steam 
on the right side until heated through. If very badly 
crushed, wet on the wrong side ; let an assistant hold a hot 
iron, bottom upward, and pass the wet side of the velvet 
slowly over the flat surface — a sort of upside-down ironing. 
"When the steam lises thickly through to the right side, it 
will raise the pile with it. Dry -without handling. 

To Curl Tumbled Feathers. 

Hold over the heated top of the range or stove, not near 
enough to burn ; withdraw, shake them out, and hold them 
over it again until curled. 

To Clean Straw Matting. 

Wash with a cloth dijiped in clean salt and water ; then 
wipe dry at once. This prevents it from turning yellow. 

To "Wash Lawn or Thin Muslin. 

Boil two quarts of wheat-bran in six quarts, or more, of 
water, half an hour. Strain through a coarse towel and 
mix in the water in which the muslin is to be washed. Use 
no soap, if you can help it, and no starch. Rinse lightly in 
fair water. This preparation both cleanses and stiffens the 
lawTi. If you can conveniently, take out all the gathers. 
The skirt should always be ripped from the waist. 



SUiiDKIES. i»n5 

To Wash Woolens. 

Wasli in clean, hot soap suds ; rinse out in clear, hot 
water, and shake out the wet without passing through the 
wringer. Worsted dress-goods should never be wrung wheu 
washed. 

To Wash White Lace Edging. 

Have a quart bottle covered with linen, stitched 
smoothly to fit the shape. Begin at the bottom and Av-ind 
the lace about it, basting fjxst at both edges, even the 
miautest point, to the linen. Wash on the bottle, soaping 
it well, rinse by plunging in a pail of fair water, and boil as 
you would a white handkerchief, bottle and all. Set in the 
hot sun to dry. When quite dry, clip the basting-threads, 
and use the lace without ii-oning. If neatly basted on, it 
will look nearly as well as new — if not quite. 

Black Lace. 

■J cup rain water, or very soft spring water. 

1 teaspoonful borax. 

1 tablespoonful spirits of wine. 

Squeeze the tumbled rusty lace through this fovir times, 
then riuse in a cup of hot water in which a black kid glove 
has been boiled. Pull out the edges of the lace until almost 
dry ; then press for two days between the leaves of a heavy 
book. 

To SroNGE Black Worsted Dresses. 

Sponge on the right side with a strong tea made of fig- 
leaves, and iron on the wrong. 

Tliis process restores lustre and crispness to alpaca, 
bombazine, etc. 



636 COMMON SENSE. 

To Cleax Very Dirty Black Dresses. 

2 parts soft water to 1 part alcohol, or if there be i)aint 
spots upon the stuff, spirits turpentine. Soai) a sponge 
well, dip in the mixture, and rub, a breadth at a time, on 
both sides, stretching it upon a table. Iron on the wrong 
side, or that which is to be inside when the stuff is made up. 
Sponge off with fair water, hot but not scalding, before you 
iron. Iron while damp. 

To Eemove Stains from Marble. 

Make a mortar of unslacked lime and very strong lye. 
Cover the spot thickly with it and leave it on for six weeks. 
Wash it off ])erfectly clean, and rub hard with a brush dip 
ped in a lather of soap and water. Polish with a smooth, 
hard brush. 

Iron Mould 

Is as nearly ineradicable as it is possible for stain to be. 
Try moistening the part injured with ink, and while this 
is wet, rub in muriatic acid diluted with five times its 
weight of water. I have heard that the old and new stain 
can sometimes be removed together by this operation. 

Mildew 

Is likewise obstinate. If anything will -extract it, it is 
lemon-juice mixed with an equal weight of salt, powdered 
starch, and soft soap. Hub on thickly and lay upon the 
gi-ass in the hot sun ; renewing the aj^plication two or three 
times a day until the spot fades or comes out. 

I have also used salt wet with tomato-juice, often re- 
newed, laying the article stained upon the grass. Some 
times the stain was taken out, sometimes not. 



8UNDK1ES. 537 



Ink. 



"While tlie stains are yet wet upon the carpet, sponga 
them with skim-milk thoroughly. Then wash out the milk 
with a clean sponge dipped again and again in fail" water, 
cold. Exchange this presently for warm; then rub dry 
with a cloth. If the stain is upon any article of clothing, 
or table, or bed liaen, wash in the milk well, afterward in 
the water. 

Dry ink stains can be removed from white cloth by 
oxalic acid, or lemon-juice and salt. 

Stains of Acids and Alkalies. 

Treat acid stains with hartshorn ; alkaline with acids. 
For instance, if the color be taken out of cloth by white- 
wash, wash with strong vinegar. 

Grease Spots. 

1 quart boiling water. 
1 oz. pulverized borax. 
■^ oz. of gum camphor. 

Shake up well and bottle. It is excellent fcr removing 
grease spots from woolens. 

Cure for Burns. 

One-third part linseed oil. 
Two-thirds lime water. 

Shake up well ; apply and wrap in soft linen. 

Until you can procure this keep the part covered with 
wood-soot mixed to a soft paste with lard, or, if you have 
not these, with common molasses. 
23* 



53S COilMON SENSE. 

To Stop the Flow of Blood. 

Bind tlie cut with cobwebs and brown sugar, pressed on 
like lint. Or, if you cannot procure these, with the fine 
dust of tea. When the blood ceases to flow, apply lauda- 
num. 

To PcElieve Astidia. 

Soak blotting or tissue paper in strong saltpetre water. 
Dry, and burn at night in your bed-room. 
I know this to be an excellent jirescription. 

Antidotes to Poison. 

For an]/ poison swallow instantly a glass of cold water 
udth a heaping teaspoonful of common salt and one of 
ground mustard stirred in. This is a speedy emetic. 
When it has acted, swallow the whites of two raw eggs. 

If you have taken corrosive sublimate take half a 
dozen raw eggs besides the emetic. If laudanum, a cup 
of veiy strong coffee. If arsenic, first the emetic, then 
half a cuji of sweet oil or melted lard. 

Cologne Water. {Fine.) (JVo. 1.) 

1 drachm oil lavender. 

1 " " bergamot. 

2 " " lemon. 

2 " " rosemary. 
50 drops tincture of musk. 
8 " oil of cinnamon. 
8 " " cloves. 

1 pint of alcohol. 



sundries. 530 

Cologne Water. (^To. 2.) 

60 drops oil of lavender. 
GO " " bergamot. 
60 " " lemon. 
60 " orange-flower water. 
1 pint of alcohol. 

Cork and shake well. 

Hard Soap. 

6 lbs. washing soda. 
3 " unslaked lime. 

Pour on 4 gallons boUing water. 

Let it stand until perfectly clear, tlien drain off. Put 
in 6 lbs. clean fat. 

Boil until it begins to harden — about two hours — stir- 
ring most of the time. 

"While boiling, thin with two gallons of cold water, 
which you have poured on the alkaline mixture after 
draining off the four gallons. Tliis must also settle clear 
before it is drawn off. Add it when there is danger of 
boiling over. 

Try the thickness by cooling a little on a plate. Put 
in a handful of salt just before taking from the fire. 
Wet a tub to prevent sticking ; turn in the soap and let 
it stand until solid. Cut into bars ; put on a board and 
let it dry. 

This will make about forty pounds of nice soaj) ; much 
better for washing (when it has dried out for two or three 
months) than yellow turpentine soap. 



MO COMMON SENSE. 

Bab Soap. 

Buy a box at a time ; cut into small squares and lay 
upon tlie garret-floor to dry for several weeks before it is 
used. 

Soft Soap. 

10 lbs. grease. 
6 " soda (wasbing), 
8 gallons bot water. 

Let it stand for several days until tbe grease is eaten 
up. If too tbick, add more water. Stir every day. If 
wood-asbes are used instead of soda, boil tbe mixture. 



THK KKD- 




INDEX. 



FAMILIAR TALK. 



PAOE 
13 



SOUPS 27 

Vegetable Soups 28 

Asparagus soup (icJdte) 30 

" " (green) 31 

Bean " {dried) 20 

Bean and com soup 30 

Com " 34 

Graham " 33 

Green Pea " {No. 1).. 28 

" " {No. 2). . 28 

Gumbo, or okra " 33 

Pea and tomato " 29 

Ven. {split and dried) soup.. 28 

Potato " .. 32 

Tomato (t«ft<er) " .. 31 

" {summer) " .. 31 

Turnip " .. 32 

Meat Soups 35 

Beef soup d la Julienne 35 

" (brotoi) 37 

Bro^vn gravy soup 41 

Chicken " 42 

Giblet " 40 

Hare or rabbit " 44 

Jlock turtle " 30 

Mutton or lamb broth 38 

Oxtail soup 44 



Veal and macaroni soup . 
Veal and sago " 

Vermicelli " 

Venison ' ' 



PAGH 

, 3-3 

. 44 

, 38 

, 43 



Fish Soups 45 



Catfish 

Clam 

Eel 

Green turtle 

Lobster 

Oyster 



soup. 



{No. 1) . 
{No. 2) . , 



FISH. 



47 
46 
47 
48 

48 
45 
45 

50 



Bass {sea) boUed 63 

" fried 62 

Catfish, stewed 67 

" fried 07 

" chowder 07 

Chowder, clam 83 

" {No. 1) 68 

" {No. 2) 69 

Codfish balls 51 

" {fresh), hoiled 'JO 

" {salt), boiled 51 

" and potato stew .... 53 
" {salt), stewed with 

52 



eggn 

Eels, fried 



68 



513 



INDEX. 



PARE 

Euls, stewed C8 

Fish, mayonnaise of 64 

Halibut, baked 54 

'' boiled ',4 

' ' devilled . •. iio 

" steak 55 

Mackerel (//Y.sZi), boiled.... 5o 

" {mU}, broiled 54 

" (frc.«h), " 53 

Perch and other pan-fish. ... G6 

Pickerel, fried 60 

" baked with cream. 00 

Eockfish and river bass 51 

Salmon, baked 57 

" boiled 5G 

" (fresh), p.clded . . . 5b 

'• (salt), " ... 59 

" (smoked), broiled.. (50 

'* steak 57 

Salmon-trout, baked with 

cream G4 

Salmon -trout, boiled G5 

" fried.- G5 

Shad, baked 62 

" (/m/i), boiled 60 

" (snlt), " 61 

" (fresli), broiled Gl 

'• (salt), '' 61 

" fried 61 

Sturgeon, baked 63 

" steak 63 

SJidl-fish 70 

Clam chowder 82 

" fritters 81 

" scallop 81 

Crab, devilled 71 

" salad 71 



PAGB 

Crabs, soft 71 

Lobster, to boil 70 

" croquettes 71 

" devilled 70 

" salad. (See Salads.) 202 

Ojsters, cream on half shell. 75 

" broiled 75 

fried 73 

" fritters 74 

" omelette 76 

" pate 79 

" pie 76 

" pickled 77 

" raw 79 

" roast 78 

' ' scalloped 74 

" steamed 79 

' " stewed 73 

ScaUops 81 

Terrapin or turtle 72 

POULTRY 83 

Chicken, boiled 88 

" broiled 90 

" fricassee (hroicn).. 89 

" " (wJdte) .. 88 

" fried (iVT?. 1) 90 

" " (No. 2) 90 

" and ham 93 

Chicken-pie (baked) 92 

" pot-pie 91 

" pudding 92 

" roast 87 

Ducks, roast 93 

" stewed 94 

Duck, cold, to use up 94 

Goose-pie 96 

' ' roast , 95 



INDEX. 



543 



PAGlt 

Guinea-fowl, roast 95 

Pigeons, broiled 97 

Pigeon-pie 98 

Pigeons, roast 97 

' ' stewed 97 

Turkey, boiled 85 

" ragoCitof 87 

" roast 84 

" scallop of 8(5 

IVIEATS 93 

Beef. 98 

Beef a la mode 101 

breakfast stew of 103 

(corned), boiled 107 

hashed 104 

heart, stewed 1 06 

(dried) 107 

Beef -steak 99 

" and onions 101 

" pie 104 

Beef, roast 98 

" tongue, boiled 107 

" to com lOG 

" roast, with Yorkshire 

pudding 99 

Beef -pie, potato-crust 105 

Mutton and Lamb 108 

i 

Mutton (( la venison 108 

" boiled 109 

" orlambchop 110 

" " outlefcs,baked 111 

Mutton-ham Ill 

" or lamh i\'c7iaiifft'. .. 112 
" " roast 108 

Matton-stew 110 



real 113 

Calfs head in a mould 131 

" scalloped 119 

" stewed 119 

Calf's brains, croquettes of. . 124 

' ' liver, fried 1 25 

" " roast 124 

" " stewed 125 

Imitation pdtc defoie gras. . 126 

Sweetbreads, broiled 120 

" fried 120 

" roasted ISl 

" stewed 120 

Veal, breast of (roast) 113 

" chops 115 

" cutlets « ?(7- Main tenon . 123 

" cutlets (j^Udn) 114 

" fillet of (roast) 114 

" jellied 121 

" loin of (roast) . . . 113 

" marbled 127 

" minced 133 

" olives with oysters. ... 1S3 

" pate 118 

" pie 115 

" shoulder of (roast). ... 114 

Y«al steak 115 

stewed 117 

Veal, knuckle of (stewed)., 117 

Pork 128 

Brawn (iVv7. 1) 144 

" (No. 2) 144 

Chine, roast 131 

Chops 134 

Ham, to cure 147 

" baked 149 

" barbecued 150 



544 



INDEX. 



PAGTt 

Ham, boiled 148 

" broiled 150 

" glazed 148 

" fiied 151 

" roast 149 

" sandwiches 151 

" and chicken sandwich- 
es 151 

" and chicken pie 152 

" and eggs 153 

" steamed 148 

Lard 142 

Leg of pork, roast 130 

Loin " " 131 

Pig's head, roast 135 

Pig's " with liver and 

heart 136 

Pig, roast {whole) 132 

Pork-steak 134 

" stewed 135 

Pot-pie of pork 138 

" Cheshire 138 

Pork, to pickle {No. 1). . . . 145 

" " {No. 2) 146 

" and beans 153 

Pudding, pork and pease ... . 153 

Spare-rib, roast 131 

Sausage, Bologna (cooked). . 142 
" " (uncooked) 141 

Sausage {No. 1) 139 

" {No. 2) 140 

" {No. 3) 140 

Saveloys 145 

Souse, or hcad-cheesa 137 

Souse of i^g's feet and ears. 136 

COJMPAXY 154 

GAME 1 60 



PAGa 
Venison 160 

Cutlets of venison 164 

Fawn, roast 105 

Ham — venison 167 

Hash " 164 

Haunch " 161 

Neck " 163 

Pasty " 165 

Sausage " 168 

Shoulder. " of, roast 163 

'' " of, stewed. . . 163 

Steak " 163 

Eabhits or Hares 108 

Barbecued rabbit IVl 

Fried " I'/l 

Fi-icassee of rabbit (brown) . . 170 

" {iMte)... 170 

Larded rabbit 171 

Pie of rabbit 173 

Rabbit roast 169 

" stewed with onions . . 169 

Squirrels 173 

Broiled sqi^irrel 174 

Brunswick stew 173 

Ragout of squin-el 173 

Pheasants, partridges, quails, 
grouse, etc 174 

Grouse, broiled 175 

" roast , 174 

" " withb-con 175 

Quails, broiled 175 

" roast 174 

" " with ham 17e 



INDEX. 



545 



PAGE 

Quail-1 ie 177 

Plieasant and partridge, roast 174 

Pie of game 176 

Salmi of game 1 75 

V.M ducks 178 

" " roast 178 

" " £te\vcd 179 

Wild pigeon pie 178 

" " stewed 177 

"Wild turkey 179 

Small birds 180 

Game, to keep from taint' ug 182 
Ortolans, reed- birds, rail, and 

sora 1&2 

Salmi of woodcock or tnipe. Id 2 

Snipe, roast ISO 

Woodcock, roast 181 

" broiled 181 

SAUCES FOR MEAT AND 

FJSH 183 

Anchovy sauce 187 

Apple " 191 

Asparagus '* 191 

Bread " 188 

Butter, to brown 192 

Cauliflower sauce 190 

Crab sauce 186 

Cranbeny sauce 192 

Drawn b itter {J\'o. 1) 183 

" " {^^o. 2). 184 

" " (No. 3) 184 

Egg sauce 184 

Flour, to brown 192 

Maitre d'botel sauce 189 

Mint " 189 



FAGS 

Mushroom sauce 190 

Onion " 189 

Oyster " 186 

Peach *' 191 

Sauce for boiled or baked fish 1 85 

" lobster 187 

White celeiy sauce 188 

" sauce for fish 185 

CATSUPS AND FLAVORED 
VINEGARS 193 

A good store sauce 1 99 

Celery vinegar 198 

Elderberr}- catsup 109 

'•Ever-readj' " catsup 197 

Horse-radish " 2C0 

" scraped 193 

Imitation Worcestershire 

sauce 195 

Lemon catsup 196 

Made mustard 193 

Mock capers 198 

Mushroom catsup 194 

Onion vinegar 199 

Ojster catsup 195 

Pepper vinegar 200 

Tomato catsup 196 

Walnut " 194 

SALADS 200 

Cabbage salad, or cold slaw . 206 

Celery " 207 

Chicken " 203 

Lettuce " 204 

Lobster " 203 

Mock crab 20 3 

Salmon salad 207 



545 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Sydney Smith's salad dress- 
ing 201 

Summer salad 205 

Tomato " 206 

Water cresses 205 

VEGETABLES. ... 210 

Artichokes 242 

Asparagus, boiled 226 

" in ambush 227 

' ' and eggs 227 

Beans, butter, or Lima 239 

" (Jnc'd) 2-^d 

" French, string or 

"snap" 238 

" kidney, and other 

smaU 239 

Beets, boiled 239 

' ' stewed 240 

Broccoli and Brussels sprouts 223 

Cabbage, boiled 218 

" fried 221 

" ladies' 220 

Cabbage and bacon 219 

" sprouts, or "col- 
lards" 220 

" stuffed 219 

CaiTots, boiled 237 

" mashed 238 

" stewed 237 

Cauliflower, boiled 222 

" scalloped 223 

" stewed 222 

Celeiy 246 

Com (i/reen). boUed 233 

" " fritters, or 

cakes 235 

" " pudding 234 



TAoa 

Com (ffreen), roast 236 

" " stewed 235 

" " and tomatoes. 233 
" " and beans (suc- 
cotash) 234 

Cucumbers, tried 232 

" raw 232 

" stewed 233 

Cymblings (summer squash). 242 

Egg-plant, fried 236 

" stuffed 237 

Hominy croquettes 249 

" boiled 248 

" baked 249 

" fried 248 

Macaroni a la crhne 252 

" baked 251 

" stewed, Italian 

style 251 

Mu.'-hrooma 244 

" baked 246 

" broiled 246 

" stewed 245 

Okra 247 

Onions, baked 229 

" stewed 228 

" stuffed 229 

Parsnips, boiled 240 

" buttered 241 

" fried 240 

" fritters 241 

" mashed 241 

Peas (green), fritters or cakes 226 

' green 226 

Poke-stalks 244 

Potatoes, baked. . . 213 

" boiled with skins on 210 
" boiled without '" 210 
" (7i«zo), boiled 213 



INDEX. 






PAGE 

Potatoes, bro\vned {w7wle). .. 21G 
" " {mashed). 21G 

" broiled 217 

" a la crime 215 

Potavo cakes 217 

" croquettes 214 

Potatoes, fried 214 

" mashed 211 

" maitre d'hotel 214 

Potato-puff 213 

" ribbon 215 

" scallop 21G 

Potatoes (stewed for break- 
fast) 213 

Potatoes (fild), stewed 212 

" stuffed 215 

" {sicect), boiled 217 

" " fried 218 

" " roast 217 

Pumpkin, baked 243 

" stewed 243 

Radishes 247 

Rice, boiled 250 

" croquettes 249 

Salsify (or oyster-plant), 
fried 23G 

Salsify (or oyster-plant), 
stewed 230 

Sea-kale, boiled 241 

" stewed 242 

Squash (summer) 243 

" (winter) 243 

Sauerkraut 221 

Sjjinach d la cremc 225 

" boiled 324 

Succotash 234 

Tomatoes, baked 231 

" broiled 231 

" raw 232 



Tomatoes, scalloped 

" and corn scaUoiJ . 

" stewed 

" stuffed and balced 

Turnips, boiled (whole) 

' ' mashed 



EGGS. 



Eggs aw lit (in bed) 

" baked 

Egg-baskets 

Eggs, boiled 

'' breaded 

" Chinese bird's nest of. 

" devilled 

" di'opped or poached. .. 

" fried 

" fricasseed 

" - with ham 

" poached a la cr'eme. . . . 
" " "tt'ith sauce. . . 

" scalloped 

" scrambled 

" upon toast 

Egg-baUs for soup 

Omelette, asparagus 

' ' a^lx fin es herbes . . . 

" cauliflower 

" cheese 

" plain 

" with ham, chicken, 
or tongue 



PA on 
230 
231 
230 
230 
224 
223 

253 

257 
256 
258 
253 
255 
256 
258 
254 
255 
255 
254 
254 
257 
257 
256 
257 
200 
260 
260 
260 
261 
259 

259 



Sweet omelettes 201 



Omelette, apple , 

" jeily 

" soufflee, baked .. . 
" " fried..., 



203 
203 
261 
261 



548 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

MILK, BUTTER, CHEESE, 
ETC 263 

Bonny clabber, or ' ' loppered 

milk" 2G5 

Butter (to make) 2G3 

Cheese 206 

Cottage cheese 268 

Cream " 268 

Junket, or mountain custard 2G6 

Rennet 265 

Thickened milk 269 

BREAD 569 

Bread, Boston brown 280 

" (family), browm 279 

" " white 277 

Butter-milk bread 282 

Bread, milk : . 282 

' ' rice 283 

" rj-e 281 

Biscuit, Graham 287 

" minute 287 

" Mrs. E.'s {soda).... 286 

" risen 284 

" potato 286 

Crackers, butter 290 

Crumpets (plain) 291 

" (siccet) 291 

MuflBns, Belle's 294 

" buttermilk 292 

" Charlotte 293 

" cream 292 

" Graham 291 

" hominy 294 

" queen 292 

" "Mother's" 293 

" rice 293 



Powders, baking- 276 

Rolls, French (No. 1) 283 

" [No. 2) 284 

Rusk(diied) 289 

" (sweet) 288 

Sally Lunn [No. 1) 285. 

" (No. 2) 285 

Sponge for bread (potato) . . 276 
" " " (plain).,. 276 

Wafers 290 

Wheatlets, Graham 288 

Yeast cakes 275 

" (hop) 273 

" (potato) 274 

' ' (self -working) 274 

Corn bread 294 

Ash-cake 301 

Batter-bread, or egg-bread. . 309 

Corn-bread, nonpareil 297 

" risen (iVb. 1)... 297 

" (No. 2)... 300 

" steamed 298 

Crumpets, Indian-meal 298 

Johnny-cake 299 

" Aunt Jenny's ... 299 

MuflSns, Indian-meal 297 

Pone 300 

" fried 301 

Gnddle-cakes, icaffles, etc. 301 

Cakes, Atmtie's (witJiotit eggs) 303 

" buckwheat 301 

" batter (risen) 304 

" cream 305 

" flannel 303 

" " (eggless) 303 



INDEX. 



5i9 



PAGE 

Coics, Graham 80:> 

' ' Grandpa's favorite. . . 30;> 

" hominv 304 

•^ rice 304 

' '• velvet 304 

Flapjacks, corn-meal 302 

Waffles, "Mothers" 30(3 

" rice [No. 1) 306 

«' " {No. 2) 30G 

" " and corn-meal. 307 

' ' risen 305 

«' quick 30(5 

i^iartcake, etc 307 

Buns, Easter ("hot cross ") . 309 

" plain 310 

Shortcake, Grandma's 309 

Scotch 303 

" strawberry 308 

" Sunnybank 397 

CAKE. 

Almond cake • • • • ^^^ 

Black cake 329 

Caramel cake 322 

Chocolate cake 322 

" caramels 325 

" eclairs 325 

Cocoanut cake ^ 31G 

" " (Rosie's)'. 316 

" cakes (small) 318 

" cake {ioaf) 317 

" cones 318 

Corn-starch cake 33:' 

Cream cake 315 

Dover " 321 

Ellie's " 32t> 



?AGB 

French cake 320 

Fmit " 3;}0 

Gold " 331 

Huckleberry cake 333 

Jelly " 31(5 

Lady " {No. 1)... 320 

" " {No. 2)... 321 

Lee " ... 318 

Lemon " {No. 1)... 320 

" " {No. 2)... 320 

Lincoln " 328 

Marble " 323 

Marbled " 324 

Martha's " 314 

Mrs. M.'scup " 315 

Mrs. M.'s sponge-cake 326 

Macaroons, almond 332 

Xut-cake . 331 

"One, two, three, four" cake 

(cDcoanut) 317 

Pound cake {No. 1) 327 

" " {No. 2) 328 

Silver " 333 

Sister Mag's cake 32' 

Sponge " 328 

Washington " 323 

I White " 334 

White Mountain cake 319 



Icing. 



313 



Almond icing 314 

Chocolate icing 325 

Plain icing 313 

Small Cakes, Cookie^., eta. . 334 

Boston cream cakes 348 

Cakes, bread . 340 



550 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Cakes, ciirrant 340 

" New Year's 335 

" small sugar 334 

" {dro2')), sponge 340 

Cookies, Mrs. B.'s 334 

" coriander 336 

" molasses ^. . . 336 

" "Mother's" 335 

" rice-tiour 836 

Crullers, Annie's 342 

' ' Aunt Margaret's . . . 340 

" Katie's 341 

" "Mother's" 341 

Doughnuts, quick 342 

" risen 342 

Ginger snaps (iVc*. 1) 337 

" " (JSTo. 2) 337 

" " {]Vo. 3) 337 

Jumbles, almond 339 

" Aunt Margaret's... 338 

'• lemon 338 

" Sirs. M.'s 339 

" ring 338 

Lady's fingers 340 

Macaroons, almond 332 

Nougat 349 

Wafers {sweet) 347 

'^'^Gingerbread 343 

Gingerbread fruit 346 

" loaf(iV^o. 1) 344 

" " iJSro.2).... 345 

" plain 344 

" soft 343 

" spiced 345 

" sponge 343 

" sugar 346 



PAOH 

PIES 349 

Apple pie {No. 1) 357 

" " (iVb. 2) 358 

Blackberry pie 368 

Cherry " 367 

Cocoanut " {No. 1) 364 

" {No. 2) 364 

Ci-ust for pies {No. 1) 350 

" " " {No. 2) 353 

" " " transparent. . . 353 

Custard ine 307 

" apple pie 353 

" chocolate pie 365 

" corn-starch pie. . . . 366 

" cocoanut " .... 365 

" peach " 358 

Huckleberry pie 368 

Lemon pie {No. 1) 361 

" {No. 2) 361 

" " {No. 3) 363 

" cream pie 363 

Meringue apple - pie (and 

peach) 358 

i\Iince-m eat, apple, for pies. . 358 

Mince pie {No. 1) 354 

" {No. 2) 354 

Mock mince-meat 356 

Orange pie 363 

Paste, French pufE 353 

" pufE 353 

Peach pie 367 

Pippin " 359 

Potato " Irish 360 

" " sweet {No. 1)... . 360 

" " " {JSo.2) 360 

Plum " 368 

Pumpkin pie {No. 1) 359- 

" {No. 2) £59 



mDEX. 



.1 



PACK 

Raspberry pie 368 

Ripe g-oosebeiTy pie 308 

Rhubiirb " 370 

Squabb " 359 

Strawberry " 309 

Tarts. 

Tart, chocolate 303 

cream raspberry 309 

' ' cranbeiTy 3G9 

" currant 368 

" curranfc and raspber- 
ry 308 

" ' damson 308 

' ' green gooseberry 368 

" lemon ...... 303 

Tartlets, orange 303 

" rhubarb 370 

SERVAI^TS 370 

PUDDIXGS 383 

Baked Puddings '. . 383 

Alice's pudding 393 

Apple, pudding, baked 384 

" dumi^lings " 388 

'' batter pudding 380 

" meringue " 384 

" and i^lum " 380 

" sweet " 385 

" and tapioca pudding.. 387 

Arrowroot pudding 390 

Batter pudding {Ho. 1) 398 

" " (No. 2) 399 

Bread " 390 

" and butter pudding. . . 391 
" fruit " ... 391 



PAOB 

Bread and marmalade pud- 
ding 393 

" Bro\\Ti Betty " 380 

Cocoanut pudding 401 

Corn-starch " ... 389 

" " mcringvie pud- 
ding 389 

Cottage pudding 399 

Cracker " 393 

" Dorchester plum pud- 
ding 394 

" fruit pudding 395 

" and jam " 39(> 

" suet " 394 

Cup puddings 400 

Dumphngs, apple (baked) . . . 388 

" Belle's 40S 

German puffs 400 

Gooseberry pudding 404 

Lemon " 400 

" meringue pudding. . . 401 
Macaroni " ... 402 

Neapolitan " ... 403 

Newark " ... 405 

Orange marmalade " ... 402 
Pippin " ... 385 

Plum " ... 405 

Queen of puddings 393 

Rhubarb pudding. ... ' 'A 

Rice " (filain)... 390 

" and tapioca pudding. . 397 

Rice-pudding Avith eggs 397 

Rice-flour pudding 397 

Tapioca " 388 

Vermicelli " 403 

Boiled puddings 406 

Berry pudding 408 

Cabinet " 419 



552 



HTDEX. 



PAOE 

Cherry, or cunant pyramid. . 414 

.Dumpling, apple (iVr 1).... 409 

(jVo. 2) 409 

'' fruit suet 411 

" rice 410 

" suet 411 

Eve's pudding 412 

Fniit " 410 

•' valise pudding 408 

Huckleberry " 408 

Indian meal pudding 411 

Orange roley-poley 414 

Queen of plum-puddings. . . . 413 

FRITTEIIS, PANCAKES, 

ETC 415 

Fritters (No. 1) 410 

" (No 2) 41G 

" apple 410 

" bread 417 

" jelly-cake 418 

" jeUy -.. 417 

Pancakes 418 

" jelly or jam 419 

Queen's toast 418 

SWEET, OR PUDDING 

SAUCES 419 

Bee-hive sauce 419 

Brandy " (hard) 420 

Cabinet pudding sauce 422 

Cream sauce {hot) 424 

Cream, sweetened {cold). . . . 423 

Custard sauce 422 

Fruit-pudding sauce 422 

Jd'y sauce [Jffo. 1) 423 

"* " (iVo. 2) 434 



PASfl 

Hard sauce 419 

Lemon" 421 

Milk " 421 

White wine sauce {liguid). . . 420 

CUSTARDS, BLANC-MANGE. 
JELLIES AND CREAMS. 4>5 

Blanc-mange, almond 433 

" arrowroot 431 

" chocolate 434 

" farina 431 

" Neapolitan . . . 433 

" velvet 434 

Charlotte Russe, chocolate. . 436 
" '• gelatine.... 437 

" " cream 435 

" " tipsey 435 

Cream, Bavarian 428 

'• Spanish 428 

Custard, almond 426 

" baked 429 

" boiled 425 

" French tapioca. . . . 429 

" quaking 423 

" snow 428 

Floating Island 437 

Flummery .... 437 

Gooseberry fool 438 

Jaune mange 433 

Jelly, calf's-foot 439 

" bird's nest in 441 

" cider 440 

' ' orange 443 

" wine (boiled) 443 

" " (mid) 440 

" variegated 443 

Meringue, cream 438 

Whipped syllabub 438 



INDEX. 



553 



rAOK 

ICE-CREAII AND OTHER 

ICES 443 

Custard, frozen with fmit. . 400 

Ice-cream, almond 447 

chocolate 447 

coffee 448 

Italian 448 

lemon 449 

peach 449 

pine apple 441 

»?.spberry or 

strawberry. ... 450 
self -freezing .... 444 

tutti frutti 451 

Ice, cherry 453 

" currant and raspbeiTy .. . 452 

*' lemon 45 1 

*' orange 452 

" pine-apple 452 

" strawberry or raspberry. 453 

RIPE FRUIT FOR DESSERT. 

Ambrosia 454 

Apples 454 

Blackberries 455 

Currants 556 

" frosted 45G 

Oranges 453 

Peaches and Pears 454 

Raspberries 455 

Salade d' orange 453 

Strawberries 455 

PRESERVES AND FRUIT 

JELLIES 47: 

Prt^erves. 

Apples baked 4G8 

24 



PAGIJ 

Apple butter 4G0 

Apples, preserved 459 

" stewed whole 469 

Blackberry jam 407 

Cherries, preserved 466 

Crab apple 461 

Damson, preserved 463 

Figs, '• 468 

Ginger, " 465 

Gooseberries," 467 

Greengage, " 461 

Lemon, " 463 

Orange marmalade 463 

' ' peel, preserved 463 

Peach mai-malade 458 

" preserves 458 

Pears, baked 469 

" presei-ved 458 

" stewed 469 

Pine-apple marmalade 464 

" preserved 464 

Quinces, baked. ... 470 

Quince cheese 460 

" marmalade 460 

Quinces, preserved 459 

RaspbeiTy jam 467 

Strawberry 466 

Strawberries, preserved 466 

Tomato, " {green). 467 

" " (;'y;e).. 467 

Unique preserves 462 

Water-melon rind, or citron. . 464 

Fruit Jdlies 470 

Blackberry jelly 470 

Cheiiy (wild) and currant 

jelly 472 

Crab-apple jelly 473 



554 



INDEX. 



Currant 

Fox grape {green) 
Grape {ripe) 
Peach 
Quince 



jeUy.. 470 

" .. 473 

" .. 47;J 

" .. 473 

" .. 478 



Raspberry and currant " .. 472 
Sti'awberry " .. 4'«0 

CA^^NED FRUITS AJSfD 

VEGETABLES 473 

Berries (brandied) 478 

" (canned) 474 

Corn and tomatoes (canned). 477 

Green corn (preserved in salt) 477 

Peaches (brandied) 478 

" (canned) 475 

Pears (brandied) 478 

" (canned) 475 

Plums (brandied) 478 

". (canned) 47G 

Tomatoes " 47G 

Candy. 

Molasses candy 479 

Sugar " 479 

PICKLES 480 

Eeans (green), and radish- 
pods 484 

Cabbage, purple 484 

" yeUow 483 

Cauliflower, pickled 485 

Cherries, " 490 

Cucumbers or gherkins, pick- 
led 480 

Cucumbers, sliced pickle. . . . 480 
Mangoes, melon " .... 483 



Mangoes, pepper pickle 483 

Nasturtium seed, " .... 485 
Onion, " ... 484 

Peache (sweet), " ... 489 

" (unpeeled) " ... 490 
Pear (sweet), " ... 489 

Picklette 491 

Plums, pickled 489 

Tomato (green), pickle 488 

" soy 488 

" ripe, pickle 488 

"Walnut or butternut pickle. 485 
Water-melon rind pickle. . . . 486 

DRINKS 491 

Blackberry cordial 496 

" vinegar 496 

Cafe au lait 493 

Claret punch 501 

Chciiy bounce 501 

Chocolate 494 

Cocoa-nibs, or shells 494 

" prepared 494 

Coffee {boiled) 492 

Coffee 491 

" (without boiling) 493 

Cranberry wine 497 

Currant, " 497 

Egg-nogg 501 

Elderberry wine 49G 

Jamaica ginger-beer 498 

Lemonade, or sherbet 498 

Milk tea for childi-en 494 

Nectar 500 

Orangeade 4C9 

Raisin wine 498 

Rasi^beny royal 495 

" \inegar 495 



INDEX. 



555 



PAOK 

Regent's punch 409 

Roman " 500 

Sherry cobbler 500 

Strawberry sherbet 4!)0 

" wine 497 

Tea 493 

THE SICK-ROOM... 503 

Blanc-mange, arrowroot .... 401 

'' sea-moss 519 

" tajHoca 513 

Beef-steak and mutton-chops 520 

Biscuit or wafers 520 

Broth, beef and sago 510 

" calf-foot 510 

" chicken 509 

" mutton 509 

" veal and sago. 509 

Custard, arrowroot. . . .' 514 

Dried rusk 520 

Dried flour for teething chil- 
dren 513 

Eau sucri' 522 

Gruel, Indian-meal 512 

'• milk and rice 512 

" oatmeal 512 

" sago 511 

Jelly, arrowroot (jultiin) 510 

" " (wine) 511 

'' chicken 51C 

" Iceland, or Irish moss 518 

" tapioca 513 

Lemonade, flaxseed 517 

" Iceland, or Irish 

moss 518 

Milk, rice-flour 514 

" sago 514 



I PAOK 

MUk, tapioca 514 

IMint julep 521 

Panada 515 

" bread, or jelly 515 

Punch, QQ<^ and mUk 518 

" milk 518 

Rice, boUed 515 

Sangaree, or parteree 520 

Tea, beef 508 

Teas, herb 521 

Tea, slippei-y-elm bark 518 

Toast, dry 519 

" mUk 519 

Toddy, apple 518 

Water, " 517 

' " jelly 517 

" toast 510 

Wine-whey 520 

THE NURSERY. .. . 523 

Arro'svToot 525 

Barley 524 

Farina 524 

Ilominj' and milk 520 

Jelly, rice 525 

Milk and bread 52G 

" condensed 528 

" porridge 527 

Mush and milk 527 

Pudding. Graham 527 

" rice-floui- 527 

"SMieaten grits 52G 

SUNDRIES 528 

Antidotes for poison 538 

Asthma, to relieve 538 

Blood, to stop the flow of . , . 539 

Burns, to cure 537 



556 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Clean, carpets to 531 

" knives .... 528 

" kettles, pots, and tins 528 

'• china and glass 529 

* ' cloth coat, a 532 

" black worsted dress . . 535 

" dirty black dress 53(5 

" paint 531 

" silk 533 

" straw mattmg 534 

' ' silver 529 

" windows 531 

Crape, wrinkled, to renew. . 434 
Feathers, tumbled, to curl . . 534 
Grease-spots, to remove .... 53J 

Soap, bar 540 

" hard 539 



PAGI 

Soap, soft 540 

Stains, acids and alkalies. . . 537 
" ink, to remove .... . 53'! 
" iron-mould, to re- 
move 53G 

" from marble to re- 
move 536 

" mildew, to remove. . 536 

Velvet, to restore the pile of. 534 

Wash, doubtful calicoes to . . 539 

" lace, black to 535 

" " white to 533 

' ' lawn, or thin muslin 534 
' ' woollens 535 

Water, cologne {No. 1) 538 

{No. 2).. .. 539 

WooUens, to keep 533 



THE GREAT HISTORICAL NOV 

B Y 

MM. ERCKMANN-CHATRIAN. 

Thi'se writers arc absolutely uucqualcd in tlieir o-\vii pe- 
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brings out into stronger relief tlie noble purpose ■\vUicli an- 
imates all flic works of -wliieU " Ma<Iam Tborese " is om-. 
False glory, military ambition, and -war never perli:«ps bad 
enemies more powerful appearing in so modest a form. 

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